UBiMRY 
SCHOOL 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


The  picture  opposite  the  title-page  is  a  reprint  of 
a  page  from  the  volume  of  plates,  made  in  1771,  to 
illustrate  Diderot's  Encyclopaedia.  This  page  is 
one  of  six,  each  8x12  ins.  in  the  original,  illustrat- 
ing the  article  in  the  encyclopaedia  on  binding. 

The  picture  in  the  upper  part  of  the  plate  repre- 
sents a  binder's  workshop.  The  person  at  A  is  beat- 
ing a  book.  The  woman  at  B  is  sewing.  The  man 
at  C  is  cutting  or  trimming  the  edges  of  a  book. 
The  man  at  D  is  working  a  press. 

Of  the  figures  below:  i  is  a  piece  of  marble  on 
which  books  are  beaten;  2  is  a  piece  of  marble  of 
different  shape  for  the  same  purpose;  3  is  a  beating 
hammer;  4  is  a  sewing  table  or  bench,  on  which 
books  are  sewn;  5  and  6  are  balls  of  thread  for  sew- 
ing books;  7,  8,  9,  10,  u,  and  12  are  parts  of  a 
sewing  bench;  13  and  14  are  large  and  small  paper 
folders. 


Notes   on 


Bookbinding  for  Libraries 


By 

John    Cotton    Dana 

Librarian  Free  Public  Library, 
Newark,  N.  J. 


Revised  and  Enlarged  Edition 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


Library  Bureau,  Chicago 
1910 


COPYRIGHTED 

1QIO 
LIBRARY     BUREAU 


Naude  On  Binding 

"The   fourth   is,    to   retrench    &   cut   off   all   the 
superfluous    expences,    ^|ch 


to  no  purpose  bestow  upon  the  binding  and  orna- 
ments of  their  Books,  and  to  employ  it  in  purchas- 
ing such  as  they  want,  that  so  they  may  not  be 
obnoxious  to  that  ~  censure  of  Seneca,  who  hand-^ 
somly  reproaches  those,  Quibus  voluminum  suorum 
frontes  maxime  placent  titulique;  &  this  the  rather, 
that  the  binding  is  nothing  but  an  accident  &  form 
of  appearing,  without  which  (at  least  so  splendid 
and  sumptuous)  Books  become  altogether  as  useful, 
commode  &  rare;  h  becoming  the  ignorant  onely  to 
esteem  a  Book  for  its  cover;  seeing  it  is  not  with 
Books,  as  it  is  with  men,  who  are  onely  known  and 
respected  for  their  robes  and  their  clothes,  so  that 
it  is  a  great  deal  better,  and  more  necessary,  for 
example,  to  have  a  good  quantity  of  Books,  well 
&  ordinarily  bound,  than  to  have  a  little  Chamber 
or  Cabinet  full  of  washed,  gilded,  ruled,  and  enriched 
with  all  manner  of  nicity,  lux  and  superfluity." 

From  John  Evelyn's  translation  of  Gabriel  Naud£'s 
"Instructions  Concerning  Erecting  of  a  Library." 
London.  1661.  Chapter  5. 


202024 


Preface  to  Second  and  Revised  Edition 

In  the  first  edition  of  this  book  I  said  that  it 
ought  not  to  be  taken  as  a  final  authority,  but  as 
a  set  of  suggestions  which  I  hoped  would  arouse 
interest  in  the  subject  of  library  binding  and  lead 
a  few  to  pursue  the  subject  further.  Some  of  the 
changes  made  for  this  edition  indicate  that  I  have 
followed  the  topic  a  little  further  myself, — I  hope 
with  advantage  to  my  readers. 

Several  chapters  are  new.  There  are  many  minor 
changes  and  omissions.  The  lists  have  been  enlarged 
and  brought  into  one. 

I  had  looked  into  the  subject  of  library  binding 
and  discovered  the  ignorance  concerning  it  of  Amer- 
ican librarians,  including  myself,  before  I  visited  Mr. 
Chivers'  beautiful  bindery  in  Bath,  England,  several 
years  ago.  That  visit  had  much  to  do  with  the  con- 
tents of  this  little  book.  Mr.  Chivers  was  quite  of 
my  opinion  that  the  only  way  to  induce  librarians  in 
America  to  improve  our  binding  was  to  persuade  us 
to  look  into  the  subject.  If  the  book  has  led  some 
to  do  this  it  has  accomplished  its  purpose.  As  to 
the  fundamental  points  in  it,  they  largely  come,  I 
am  pleased  to  confess,  from  England,  by  way  of  that 
bindery  in  Bath. 

At  the  risk  of  seeming  to  speak  to  commercial 
ends  I  quote  in  effect  some  of  the  things  said  by 


12  PREFACE 

Mr.  drivers  in  one  of  his  circulars,  prefacing  the 
quotation  with  the  remark  that  the  point  I  wish 
chiefly  to  make  in  this  book  is  the  advantage  of 
having  certain  books,  when  new,  bound  once  for  all: 

"The  following  statement  is  not  an  exaggeration: 
A  library  saves  half  the  cost  of  new  popular  books, 
and  of  replacements  for  which  much  use  may  be 
anticipated,  if  it  purchases  them  in  Cedric  Olivers' 
patent  bindings.  New  books  supplied  in  these  bind- 
ings are  sold  as  being  bound  once  for  all.  It  is  thought 
that  they  are  so  bound  as  to  serve  for  quite  fifty  per 
cent,  more  issues  than  will  a  book  purchased  in 
publisher's  cloth,  used  for  a  time,  and  then  rebound 
in  the  ordinary  way.  Generally  speaking  such  results 
and  even  better  results  are  obtained.  Occasionally, 
however,  a  book  does  not  come  up  to  these  expecta- 
tions. In  such  cases  it  is  especially  desired  that 
its  failure  be  reported  and,  if  necessary,  that  the 
book  be  returned  for  examination.  The  paper  used 
in  modern  books  is  of  such  varying  quality  that  it 
is  sometimes  difficult  to  tell  without  actually  trying 
what  is  the  best  manner  of  treating  it." 

Buy  books  well  bound  direct  from  publishers' 
sheets;  mend  ordinary  books  very  little;  rebind  them 
early;  watch  results;  tabulate  them,  and  make  use 
of  experience.  These  are  the  main  themes  of  this 
book. 

J.  C.  D. 
Free  Public  Library, 

Newark,  N.  J.,  May,  1909. 


Contents 

PAGE 

Description  of  Frontispiece 4 

Quotation  from  Naude" 9 

Preface  to  Second  and  Revised  Edition 1 1 

Table  of  Contents 13 

List  of  Illustrations 15 

CHAPTER 

I.      Introductory 17 

II.     Binding:  the  Process  Described 26 

III.  The  Literary  Side  of  Library  Rebinding 36 

IV.  Binding  Materials  Suitable  for  a  Library 41 

V.     Rebinding  for  Libraries 44 

VI.     Lettering  and  Numbering  the  Backs  of  Books  53 

VII.  Pamphlets 58 

VIII.  Magazine  Binders 61 

IX.  Repairing  Books,  General  Rules 68 

X.  Repairing  Books,  Newark  Methods 74 

XI.  Repairing  Books,  Materials  and  Tools 86 

XII.  Covering  Books 90 

XIII.  Leather,  General  Notes 93 

XIV.  Paper  and  Paper  Making 101 

XV.     Binding  Records   no 

XVI.     Binding  Records  and  Notes — Newark 112 

XVII.     Bindery  Equipment 115 

XVIII.     List  of  Technical  Terms 119 

XIX.     List  of  Makers  of  and  Dealers  in  Bookbinders' 

Materials,  Tools  and  Machinery 161 

XX.     A   Few  of  the   Best   Books   on   Bookbinding, 

Paper  and  Leather 163 

Index 169 


1.3 


List  of  Illustrations 

PAGE 

Old  Picture  of  Bindery  and  Tools Frontispiece 

Sewing,  Drawing  Showing  Four  Methods 27 

Sewing  on  Tapes 32 

Method  of  Attaching  Slips  on  Ends  of  Bands  to  Boards  34 

Plates,  Two  Methods  of  Inserting  Them 48 

Method  of  Lacing  in  Slips  on  Ends  of  Bands 49 

French  and  Ordinary  Joints 50 

Anatomy  of  a  Joint 51 

Type  Faces  Suitable  for  Lettering 55 

Type  Cabinet ." 56 

Backing  Boards,  metal 121 

Backing  Boards,  wood,  steel-faced 121 

Backing  Hammer 122 

Backing  Press 123 

Beating  Hammer 124 

Boards,  brass-bound 125 

Hand  Wheel  Drive  Cutter 131 

Finishing  Presses 135 

Finishing  Stand 136 

Lettering  Pallet 149 

Flat  Polisher 151 

Rounding  Hammer 153 

Sewing  Bench 155 

Standing  Press  of  Wood  and  Iron 158 


OF    THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


CHAPTER  I 

Introductory 

As  the  title  indicates  these  notes  have  been  com- 
piled in  the  hope  that  they  may  be  of  assistance  to 
librarians  in  caring  for  the  binding  and  rebinding 
of  library  books.  They  hardly  touch  upon  publishers' 
binding  or  the  decoration  of  bindings.  The  sugges- 
tions and  advice  they  give  should  not  be  taken  as 
final,  for  the  binding  and  rebinding  question  is  not 
yet  settled.  They  may  help  some  to  carry  out 
more  successfully  their  own  inquiries  and  experi- 
ments. If  good  binders  were  more  common  librarians 
would  need  little  of  the  information  here  briefly  set 
forth.  But  under  the  present  conditions  of  the  book- 
binder's art  in  this  country  librarians  themselves 
must  often  furnish  considerable  expert  knowledge,  if 
they  wish  their  work  well  done. 

I  have  refrained  from  going  much  into  the  details 
of  the  process  of  binding.  The  details  can  only  be 
made  clear  by  means  of  illustrations,  and  have 
already  been  most  admirably  set  forth  in  Douglas 
Cocker  ell's  book.  I  have  tried  to  draw  attention  to 
the  important  points.  The  librarian  ought  to  know 
good  results  when  he  sees  them,  or  at  least  when 
he  tests  them  on  his  books;  the  details  of  every 
step  he  can  learn  if  he  will,  by  a  little  practice  and 


l8  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

a  good  deal  of  observation.  No  librarian  should  try 
to  bind  or  to  conduct  personally  his  own  bindery. 
Binding  is  a  special  trade,  and  skill  and  speed  in  it 
come  only  by  long  practice.  The  librarian  cannot 
become  a  skilled  binder.  He  should  become  familiar 
with  the  results  of  the  binding  he  gets  by  a  study 
of  his  books.  If  he  finds  they  do  not  wear  well, 
but  rot,  break  or  show  loose  pages,  let  him  keep  a 
few  statistics,  and  if  he  learns  he  is  wasting  money 
on  cheap  work  or  poor  material,  let  him  change  his 
material  and  his  processes,  and  perhaps  his  binder. 
I  hope  this  book  may  lead  some  to  test  the  work 
they  are  now  getting,  and  may  help  some  to  get 
more  satisfactory  workmanship  and  more  enduring 
materials.  It  is  not  a  guide  to  the  craft  of  binding. 
To  get  good  binding,  go  to  a  good  binder;  to  learn 
about  the  binding  craft,  practice  it  and  read  Cock- 
erell;  to  discover  if  your  binding  is  good,  watch  it 
and  gather  statistics  of  its  wear. 

Much  of  the  information,  many  reports  of  experi- 
ences and  many  suggestions  will  be  found  in  the 
lists  of  leathers,  etc.,  and  definitions  of  terms  used 
in  binding.  It  seemed  unwise  to  repeat  them  as 
part  of  a  connected  text. 

In  considering  the  subject  of  economical  binding 
and  rebinding  for  libraries,  we  find  that  we  are 
entirely  without  standards.  We  have  no  figures  for 
comparisons.  Librarians  have,  save  in  a  very  few 
cases,  made  no  study  of  the  comparative  value  of 
bindings,  either  of  original  cloth  or  of  the  rebind- 
ings  they  have  had  put  on  their  books.  If  a  few 


INTRODUCTORY  IQ 

librarians  would  note  the  number  of  times  books 
can  be  issued  without  rebinding  after  they  are 
received  in  the  original  publisher's  cloth,  and  how 
many  issues  they  will  stand  after  they  have  been 
once,  or  twice,  rebound,  they  would,  in  a  few  months, 
have  data  from  which  they  could  draw  helpful  con- 
clusions in  regard  to  the  comparative  value  of  bind- 
ings and  rebindings. 

The  test  of  a  binding,  whether  publisher's  original, 
special  from  the  sheets,  or  a  rebinding,  lies,  for  ordi- 
nary lending  books,  in  the  ratio  of  its  cost  to  the 
number  of  times  the  book  it  covers  is  lent  for  home 
use  before  being  discarded.  This  ratio  has  rarely 
been  systematically  noted. 

To  the  inquiry,  does  the  method  of  rebinding 
which  my  library  now  employs  give  the  best  possible 
return  for  the  money  spent?  most  librarians  must 
reply  that  they  do  not  know. 

Reference  and  college  libraries  are  often  also 
much  in  the  dark.  The  continued  quite  general  use 
for  permanent  bindings  of  a  leather  which  tests  have 
shown  will  not  last  over  25  or  30  years  at  the  most 
is  an  evidence  of  this. 

In  England,  as  is  well  known,  a  good  many  years 
of  careful  observation  and  comparison  of  experi- 
ments have  led  a  large  number  of  librarians  to  the 
conclusion  which  some  American  librarians  also 
accept,  that  it  is  the  part  of  sound  economy  to  have 
books  carefully  bound  directly  from  publishers'  sheets, 
even  though  the  prices  of  such  bindings  seem  at 
first  unduly  high. 


20  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

I  sent  a  letter  of  inquiry  to  a  large  number  of 
libraries  asking  for  detailed  information  about  the 
wear  of  books  in  publishers'  bindings  and  in  the 
one  or  more  rebindings  which  were  placed  on  them. 
Replies  were  received  from  18  libraries,  giving  brief 
life  histories  of  74  books.  Definite  conclusions  can- 
not be  drawn  from  these  reports,  as  librarians  differ 
much  in  their  ways  of  treating  books.  Some  rebind 
them  as  soon  as  they  show  serious  signs  of  wear; 
others  keep  them  in  circulation  long  after  they  have 
begun  to  go  to  pieces.  But  the  figures  indicate  that 
it  would  pay  these  libraries,  as  it  probably  would 
all  others,  to  get  most  of  the  books  which  are  to  be 
subjected  to  much  handling  strongly  bound  direct 
from  publishers'  sheets. 

The  reports  show  that  74  books  cost,  including  first 
price,  rebinding  and  labor  of  handling  for  rebinding, 
an  average  of  $1.38  each;  that  they  were  lent  an 
average  of  79  times  in  the  two  states,  new  and  re- 
bound; and  that  they  were  out  of  use  an  average  of 
five  weeks  while  being  rebound.  A  book  of  a 
nature  similar  to  those  reported  on,  well-bound 
from  publishers'  sheets  costs  about  $1.50;  can  be 
lent  from  100  to  150  times  and  loses  no  time  in  being 
rebound. 

Of  these  books  52  were  rebound  a  second  time  at  an 
average  cost,  including  labor  in  preparation,  of  40 
cents;  were  out  of  use  an  average  of  five  weeks;  and 
were  lent  an  average  of  43  times  each  in  this  second 
binding.  The  complete  history  of  the  books  a  second 
time  rebound  is  as  follows: 


INTRODUCTORY  21 

First  cost  .95 

Cost  of  first  rebinding  .36 

Cost  of  time  in  handling  .07 

Cost  of  second  rebinding  .33 

Cost  of  time  in  handling  .07 

Total  cost  1.78 

Times  lent  in  publishers'  cloth  32 

Times  lent  in  first  rebinding  47 

Times  lent  in  second  rebinding  43 


Time  out  of  use  first  rebinding          5 . 5  weeks 

Time  out  of  use  second  rebinding     5 .     weeks 

Total  time  out  of  use  10.5  weeks 

These  figures  do  not  tell  the  whole  story.  The 
book  bound  strongly  and  flexibly  from  publishers' 
sheets  is  from  the  first  more  convenient  to  handle 
and  pleasanter  to  read,  and  usually  looks  better 
throughout  all  its  one  long  life  than  do,  on  the  aver- 
age, those  books  which  twice  or  thrice  in  their  his- 
tories get  into  a  broken-backed,  loose-leaved,  gener- 
ally disreputable  condition.  Furthermore,  and  this 
is  most  important,  a  book  is  most  wanted  in  a  library 
when  it  is  new;  if  sent  out  to  be  rebound  for  five 
and  a  half  weeks  after  it  has  been  lent  32  times  it  is 
out  of  use  just  when  it  is  most  in  demand;  and  the 
library  loses  in  its  effectiveness — that  is,  in  the  service 
it  can  render  its  public  for  the  money  expended — 
much  more  than  the  mere  difference  in  the  money 
cost  of  the  two  kinds  of  binding  would  indicate.  The 
durable  first  binding  gives  us  a  book  which  can  be 
in  constant  service  from  100  to  150  times  from  the 


22 


BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 


day  it  goes  to  the  shelves,  just  when  it  is  most  needed. 
A  book  once  or  twice  rebound  in  the  first  few  months 
of  its  life  is  a  special  source  of  annoyance — the  paradox 
is  permissible — by  its  very  absence. 
Table  of  life  histories: 


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6 

40 

2 

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40 

70 

8 

20 

70 

3 

5 

3  25 

2  50 

6 

50 

23 

4 

10 

9  80 

15 

4  5° 

4 

60 

25 

4  So 

8 

60 

32 

5 

i 

I  OO 

28 

35 

4 

12 

6 

10 

10  00 

28 

2  50 

6 

3° 

31 

2  5O 

6 

3° 

22 

7 

4 

4  oo 

20 

I  80 

4 

40 

25 

I  80 

4 

40 

15 

8 

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I  00 

70 

54 

IO 

08 

100 

9 

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75 

35 

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54 

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29 

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3° 

80 

I  05 

2 

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"5 

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37 

40 

6 

12 

36 

12 

3 

2  70 

35 

I  20 

6 

36 

40 

13 

i 

96 

18 

35 

6 

IO 

64 

35 

6 

IO 

32 

14 

2 

I  80 

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5° 

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16 

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16 

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IS 

4 

2  72 

19 

i  40 

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32 

19 

i  40 

5 

32 

14 

16 

15 

15  oo 

45 

3  75 

4 

1  5° 

60 

3  75 

4 

i  5° 

5° 

17 

i 

I  OO 

15 

25 

4 

06 

60 

15 

4 

06 

5° 

18 

i 

98 

30 

35 

4 

08 

62 

35 

4 

08 

28 

Totals  74 

70  20 

575 

26  99 

99 

5  22 

844 

17  09 

58 

3  84 

472 

Averages  for 
each  Book    95 

32 

36 

Si 

07 

47 

33 

5 

07 

43 

In  the  Newark  library  an  examination  o'f  56  books, 
chiefly  novels,  from  15  or  20  different  publishers, 
shows  that  on  the  average  they  were  lent  in  publish- 
ers' binding  only  25  times  each  before  being  rebound; 


INTRODUCTORY  23 

and  that  42  books  in  the  juvenile  department  were 
lent  in  the  publishers'  binding  an  average  of  only  17 
times  each. 

In  bindings  and  rebindings  one  of  the  most  essen- 
tial things  to  be  secured  is  ease  of  opening.  A  book 
that  opens  out  easily,  and  lies  flat  without  being 
pressed  or  held  in  position,  will  probably  keep  clean 
and  whole  for  more  than  twice  as  many  lendings  as 
one  that  is  held  together  tightly  at  the  back.  As  a 
great  many  of  the  library  books  which  call  for  rebind- 
ings have  to  be  trimmed  at  the  back  and  overcast, 
it  is  essential  that  the  overcast  sewing  be  of  a  flexible 
nature,  one  that  permits  of  the  easy  opening  of  the 
book.  Probably  few  of  the  factors  in  book  con- 
struction and  book  injury  have  been  more  effective 
than  the  tight  binding,  held  open  with  difficulty, 
which  is  produced  by  nearly  all  of  the  current  over- 
casting or  whipstitching. 

Another  point  that  cannot  be  too  strongly  insisted 
on  is  that  books  not  only  differ  from  one  another  in 
their  natures  and  so  require  different  treatment  in 
binding ;  but  also  differ  in  the  use  they  are  to  receive, 
and  require  different  bindings  on  that  account. 

It  should  be  understood  that  bookbinding  is  a 
craft  in  the  best  sense  of  that  word.  To  bind  a  book 
well  calls  for  good  judgment  and  care  at  every  step. 
The  librarian  can  draw  up  schedules  with  infinity  of 
detail,  and  make  them  as  correct  as  he  may  please, 
basing  them  on  experience  without  end;  and  the 
binder,  so  far  as  material  and  processes  are  concerned, 
may  seem  to  follow  these  specifications  exactly,  and 


24  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

still  may  produce  poor  bindings.  To  secure  a  good 
binding  the  spirit  of  the  binder  must  go  into  it.  In 
drawing  the  thread,  in  paring  and  placing  the  leather, 
in  applying  the  paste  and  glue,  and  in  every  other 
of  the  many  processes  involved,  the  man  without 
good  will,  as  the  man  without  skill,  can  spoil  the 
whole  binding.  Librarians  should  learn  to  esteem 
bookbinding  highly.  It  is  a  craft  which  lies  close 
to  them.  It  is  preeminently  their  business  to  encour- 
age it  to  grow  in  excellence.  They  should  develop 
their  local  binder's  interest  in  his  calling,  stand  by 
him,  urge  him  on  to  better  work,  and  pay  him  ade- 
quately for  it. 

One  may  frankly  say  that  the  character  of  bind- 
ing done  in  nearly  all  libraries  in  America  has  been, 
up  to  the  present  time,  a  discredit  to  the  library  pro- 
fession. We  owe  it  to  ourselves  to  take  up  this  craft 
and  do  what  we  can  to  elevate  it. 

One  objection  sometimes  made  to  bindings  of  the 
highest  grade  is  that  they  last  too  long ;  and  after  the 
book  is  too  greatly  soiled  and  tattered  within  to  be 
longer  kept,  the  binding  itself  still  holds,  showing 
that  more  care  has  been  put  into  its  construction, 
and  consequently  more  cost,  than  it  needed.  The 
objection  needs  only  to  be  stated  for  its  absurdity 
to  be  seen.  The  thorough  binder,  the  skilled  crafts- 
man, adapts  his  binding  to  the  book  and  to  the  use, 
as  far  as  he  can  judge  of  it,  which  it  is  to  receive. 

He  binds  each  book  so  well  that  it  will  hold  together 
to  the  end  of  time;  or  until  its  paper  fairly  drops  to 
pieces.  He  can  issue  with  each  volume  no  guarantee 


INTRODUCTORY  25 

that  it  will  not  receive  more  than  its  proper  baptism 
of  dirt  from  careless  borrowers  long  before  the  paper 
in  it  begins  to  give  way  and  fray  out.  The  binder's 
obligation  is  to  bind  the  book  well.  It  is  the  libra- 
rian's business  to  see  that  the  book  is,  as  to  its  interior, 
well  treated.  As  to  its  binding  lasting  too  long, 
why  should  the  librarian  concern  himself  about  the 
shell  after  the  kernel  is  eaten?  It  should  be  noted 
again,  however,  that  a  book  well  bound,  opening 
easily,  and  lying  open  without  pressure  from  ringers 
or  thumbs,  keeps  clean  many  times  longer  than  one 
that  opens  hard. 

The  sum  of  all  my  observations  is,  the  best  is  the 
cheapest.  If  a  book  is  worth  binding  let  it  be  bound 
by  the  best  man  available.  If  possible,  buy  books 
so  well  bound  from  the  publishers'  sheets,  that  they 
will  never  need  to  be  bound  again. 


CHAPTER  II 

Binding:    The  Process  Described 

Books  are  now  printed  in  large  sheets  from  4  to 
64  pages  at  a  time.  In  many  cases  paper  is  drawn 
from  a  roll  (as  it  is  in  the  printing  of  a  newspaper), 
printed  on  both  sides  in  large  sections  of  64  pages, 
and  cut  and  folded  as  it  leaves  the  press.  These 
sheets,  of  several  pages  each,  after  being  printed, 
are  gathered  into  a  complete  book,  sometimes  by  a 
machine,  and  are  then  sewn  together  by  a  machine. 
This  machine  for  sewing  is  a  comparatively  recent 
invention.  In  most  cases  sewing  done  on  a  machine 
is  not  as  strong  as  the  old-fashioned  hand  sewing. 
The  sections,  or  signatures,  or  folds  of  the  book,  as 
the  several  sets  of  several  pages  each  are  called,  are 
caught  together  only  by  thread;  strings  or  tapes  are 
not  used.  This  sewing  is  then  reinforced  by  a  piece 
of  cloth,  usually  thin,  cheap  muslin,  or  poor  super, 
which  is  pasted  over  the  back  and  allowed  to  extend 
a  little  way  down  each  side.  But  sewing  on  a  ma- 
chine can  be  done  with  strings  added  and  made  very 
strong. 

Covers  for  books  are  now  made  by  machines  into 
which  are  fed  pieces  of  cardboard  and  a  roll  of  cloth. 
The  machine  cuts  the  cloth  into  the  proper  size, 
pastes  it  and  folds  it  over  the  boards  into  a  cover, 

26 


BINDING:  THE  PROCESS  DESCRIBED 


27 


leaving  a  loose  place  between  the  two  boards  to  be 
filled  by  the  body  of  the  book.  This  cover  is  then 
printed  in  a  machine  much  like  a  printing  press; 
the  gold  of  the  title  on  the  back  or  sides  or  both, 
and  the  colors  or  blank  impressions,  for  ornament, 
all  being  impressed  on  it  with  great  rapidity.  The 
completed  cover,  called  a  case,  is  then  pasted  to  the 


t         (ft          ft          » 


Sewing 

A     Section  of  Fifteenth  Century  sewing  on  double  bands 

with  head  and  tail  bands. 

B     Section  of  modern  "flexible"  sewing  round  single  bands. 
C     Section  of  ordinary  sewing  with  sunk  bands. 
D     Section   of  tape   sewing  advocated   for  cheap  work  in 

place  of  C. 
From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding 

Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.     London:  Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 


28  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

sides  of  the  book.  A  book  thus  bound  has  nothing 
to  hold  cover  and  inside  together  save  a  strip  of  thin 
muslin,  with  a  strip  of  paper  which  goes  over  it, 
passing  from  the  back  of  the  book  to  the  inside  of 
the  board  covers.  This  strip  grows  weak  after  a 
little  use  and  frequently  breaks,  or  pulls  away  from 
the  cover,  or  from  the  back,  or  from  both.  Books 
printed  on  cheap  paper  and  folded  and  sewed  and 
bound  by  machinery  in  the  manner  thus  very  briefly 
outlined  can  be  produced  and  sold  at  present  for  10 
cents  each,  or  even  less. 

Books  printed  with  more  care,  on  better  paper, 
with  a  better  quality  of  cloth  on  the  cover,  and  a 
more  elaborate  title  in  real  gold  instead  of  some 
cheaper  imitation  of  it,  books,  that  is,  like  the  novels 
issued  by  the  better  class  of  publishers,  can  be  pro- 
duced in  quantities  of  from  one  to  three  thousand, 
for  from  15  to  30  cents  each.  Few  of  the  novels  put 
on  the  market  today  cost  the  publishers,  for  their 
making  alone,  as  much  as  the  latter  price.  To  this 
must  be  added  a  royalty  to  the  author,  generally 
10%  of  the  retail  price,  the  cost  of  the  management 
of  the  business  and  the  advertising.  In  the  case  of 
small  editions,  one  or  two  thousand,  this  brings  the 
original  cost  of  the  average  work  up  to  50  or  75 
cents.  Suppose  this  book  to  be  offered  at  retail  at 
$1.25.  There  must  then  be  deducted  from  this  retail 
price  the  discount  to  the  jobber,  25  to  40+10%, 
and  the  royalty,  and  the  advertising,  and  the  cost  of 
production,  etc.,  leaving  a  profit  to  the  publisher 
of  from  5  to  20  cents  on  each  volume.  A  well-made 


BINDING:  THE  PROCESS  DESCRIBED  29 

and  widely  advertised  novel  which  does  not  sell 
more  than  a  thousand  copies  is  not  a  very  profitable 
product  for  a  publisher  to  put  out. 

The  school  text-books  issued  by  the  more  reputable 
publishing  houses  are  generally  very  well  made. 
They  are  printed  on  good  paper,  usually  rather 
highly  calendered,  with  good  ink,  are  bound  with 
extra  care,  and  have  good  material  in  their  covers. 
The  competition  between  school  book  publishers 
makes  it  necessary  for  them  in  self-defense  to  pro- 
duce books  which  will  wear  well  in  the  hands  of  the 
average  pupil. 

Up  to  a  few  years  ago  all  books  were  sewn  by  hand, 
the  covers  were  made  by  hand,  and  hand  work  was 
employed  in  putting  book  and  cover  together. 

The  process  of  sewing  by  hand  may  be  briefly 
described  as  follows:  Two  or  more  strings  or  tapes 
are  stretched  between  the  edge  of  a  board  and  a 
stick  held  horizontally  above  it  by  two  uprights. 
The  book  folded  and  ready  for  sewing,  after  having 
been  either  pressed  or  beaten  with  a  hammer  to 
make  it  lie  smooth,  is  held  in  a  vise  and  two  saw  cuts 
are  made  in  the  back  at  about  the  same  distance 
from  each  other  and  from  the  ends.  Two  smaller 
saw  cuts  are  also  made  in  the  back  of  the  book,  one 
between  each  of  the  larger  ones  and  the  opposite 
ends  of  the  back.  The  first  signature — the  fold 
or  section  made  of  a  large  sheet  folded — of  the 
book  is  laid  on  the  board  so  that  the  larger  saw  cuts 
are  opposite  the  two  strings.  A  thread  is  passed 
through  the  small  cut  at  one  end,  into  the  middle 


30  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

of  the  fold,  then  out  again  by  the  first  string,  around 
the  string,  and  in  again  to  the  middle  of  the  fold, 
then  along  the  inside  of  the  fold  to  the  next  string, 
around  that  string,  along  inside  the  fold,  then  out 
again  at  the  other  small  cut.  The  second  signature 
is  then  laid  on  top  of  the  first.  The  thread  is  passed 
into  the  small  cut,  along  and  around  the  two  strings, 
as  with  the  first  signature,  and  out  at  the  Other 
end,  where  it  is  tied  to  the  end  of  the  thread  which 
has  been  left  sticking  out  of  the  first  saw  cut  for 
this  purpose.  This  process  is  continued  until  the 
book  is  all  fastened  together  and  to  the  strings.  As 
the  sewing  goes  on,  the  several  signatures  are  caught 
together  at  the  smaller  holes  at  each  end  by  passing 
the  thread,  as  it  comes  out  of  the  hole,  down  and 
under  the  loop  made  by  the  passing  of  the  thread 
between  the  two  signatures  previously  sewn.  In 
the  case  of  a  book  containing  a  large  number  of 
signatures  the  thread  does  not  extend  the  whole 
length  of  each  fold,  but  passes  from  one  to  another 
as  it  goes  the  length  of  the  book,  gathering  on  two 
signatures  at  once.  Sometimes,  by  using  four  strings 
instead  of  two,  the  string  is  made  to  pass  through 
and  to  sew  on  three  signatures  at  a  time.  Examples 
of  this  two-on  and  three-on  method  can  be  seen  in 
almost  any  large  book  bound  prior  to  15  or  20  years 
ago.  In  very  careful  binding  by  hand  in  the  early 
days  of  book-making,  the  strings  were  not  set  into 
saw  cuts,  but  were  simply  laid  across  the  back  of 
the  book.  The  thread  came  out  of  the  signature 
and  passed  around  the  strings,  and  went  in  again. 


BINDING:  THE  PROCESS  DESCRIBED  31 

The  strings,  with  the  thread  thus  wrapped  around 
them,  made  a  welt  across  the  back  of  the  book. 
These  welts,  when  covered  by  the  leather  of  the 
binding,  showed  as  raised  bands.  These  raised 
bands  are  imitated  by  pasting  bits  of  leather  on  the 
back  in  much  so-called  fine  binding  today.  In  some 
cases  the  old  process  is  employed  and  the  bands 
have  a  real  reason  for  existence.  Books  are  some- 
times sewn  on  tapes  or  strips  of  vellum.  These, 
laid  across  the  back,  sometimes  make  ridges  which 
are  treated  as  bands  in  the  completed  book. 

In  old  bindings,  to  give  the  book  a  better  appear- 
ance at  top  and  bottom,  what  is  called  a  headband 
was  put  on  with  thread,  the  thread  passing  through 
the  signatures  and  from  one  signature  to  another  in 
such  a  way  as  still  more  securely  to  hold  these 
together.  Today  the  headband  is  still  used;  but 
usually  it  is  simply  pasted  in  and  is  little  more  than 
an  ornament.  Sometimes  the  book's  back  is  still 
further  reinforced  by  pasting  or  gluing  to  it  a  piece 
of  vellum,  leather  or  heavy  cloth  before  the  process 
of  putting  on  the  cover  begins. 

Set  rules  for  sewing  books  should  not  be  laid  down. 
Each  book  is  treated  by  the  skillful  binder,  or  should 
be,  in  accordance  with  the  character  of  its  paper, 
the  number  of  inserts,  the  thickness  of  the  paper, 
the  size  of  the  signatures,  the  size  of  the  leaves, 
the  use  it  is  to  receive,  and  other  facts.  The  good 
binder  binds  each  book  well  according  to  its  kind. 

After  the  book  is  properly  sewn,  the  strings  on 
which  it  is  gathered  are  cut  off  a  short  distance  from 


32  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

the  sides.  Pieces  of  cardboard  are  cut  of  the  proper 
size  for  a  cover.  The  ends  of  the  strings  are  laced 
into  them  or  fastened  down  upon  them  with  paste 


Showing  a  Method  of  Sewing  on  Tapes 

The  catching  up  of  the  alternate  groups  of  threads  as  they 
cross  the  bands  renders  the  sewing  firmer.  There  are 
other  methods  of  achieving  this  end. 

From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding 
Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.  London:  Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 


BINDING:  THE  PROCESS  DESCRIBED  33 

or  glue.  The  leather  for  the  cover  is  then  pasted 
or  glued  to  the  back  and  the  outside  of  the  boards. 
The  ends  are  turned  over  the  boards  and  at  the  top 
and  bottom  of  the  book  are  turned  down  and 
pasted  to  themselves,  thus  forming  a  roll  or  crown 
which  lies  up  close  to  the  headband.  The  sides  are 
then  covered,  if  the  book  is  not  to  be  bound  in  full 
leather,  with  cloth  or  paper  or  other  material.  The 
outside  sheets  of  the  books,  called  end-sheets,  are 
then  pasted  to  the  inside  of  the  cover  and  the  book 
is  practically  complete. 

The  back  of  the  book  is  always  covered  with  glue 
after  the  sewing  and  before  the  leather  or  cloth  is 
put  on.  This  glue  is  thin  and  hot,  and  is  put  on  to 
hold  together  the  backs  of  the  signatures.  In  round- 
ing, the  binder  manipulates  the  book  with  the  hands, 
and  taps  it  with  a  hammer  until  the  proper  shape  is 
secured.  This  is  done  after  the  coat  of  glue  has 
been  applied.  In  edition  work  this  is  done  on  a 
machine.  In  backing  the  book  is  held  between  two 
metal,  or  metal-edged,  plates  close  up  to  the  back, 
the  back  having  been  stiffened  previously  with  a 
coat  of  glue  which  has  not  set  very  firmly;  and  with 
a  hammer  the  backs  of  the  signatures  are  pounded 
down  and  out,  making  a  slight  ledge  or  groove  along 
the  outer  edges  against  which  set  later  the  boards 
of  the  covers. 

If  the  book  is  to  be  tight  back  the  cloth  or  leather 
is  glued  direct  to  the  backs  of  the  signatures  thus 
rounded,  though  often  a  thin  piece  of  cloth,  super, 
is  first  glued  on,  extending  over  onto  the  sides.  If 


34  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

it  is  to  be  loose  back  a  double  fold  of  paper  is  attached 
to  the  back,  one  sheet  to  the  back  and  one  to  the 
cover  material.  The  leather  or  cloth  then  stands  out 
from  the  book,  when  it  is  open,  being  attached  to  it 
only  at  the  joints.  It  is  in  loose  back  binding,  as 
said  above,  that  cloth  or  leather  is  sometimes  glued 
fast  and  with  great  care  to  the  back  before  the  cover 
goes  on,  thus  taking  the  place  of  the  leather  of  the 
cover  in  the  tight  back  book.  In  the  best  binding 
this  backing  extends  over  through  or  past  the  joint 
and  onto  the  sides  or  covers;  and  is  also  firmly 


Showing  Method  of  Attaching  Tape  Slips  or  Ends  of  Bands 
to  a  Split  Board  Leaving  a  "  French  Joint " 

From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding. 
Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.     London:    Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 

attached,  at  the  joint,  to  the  leather  of  the  back. 
In  the  Newark  library  we  use  for  this  a  thin  soft 
muslin  of  the  best  quality. 

This    description    of   the   process   of  binding   is   a 
suggestive    outline    only.      Enough    has    been    said, 


BINDING:  THE  PROCESS  DESCRIBED  35 

however,  to  show  that  the  books  sewn  by  hand  and 
fastened  carefully  to  the  cover  as  described  will,  if 
properly  made,  wear  much  longer  than  a  book 
bound  by  machinery,  if  bound  as  above  described. 
But,  just  as  a  machine  properly  handled  can  pro- 
duce paper  of  greater  uniformity  of  thickness  and 
of  a  quality  superior  in  many  respects  to  the  best 
hand-made  paper,  so  the  machines  used  in  binding 
can,  if  properly  handled,  bind  books  even  more 
strongly  than  can  any  save  the  most  careful  work- 
man. The  possible  differences  between  machine- 
made  books  can  easily  be  noted  in  the  cheap  novels 
of  the  day,  which  are  poorly  bound,  and  well-made 
law  books  and  encyclopaedias.  These  latter  are 
often  faithfully  put  together  and  will  stand  almost 
as  much  wear  as  any  books  ever  produced. 


CHAPTER  III 

The  Literary  Side  of  Library  Rebinding 

After  satisfactory  materials  and  methods  of  bind- 
ing for  a  library  have  been  discovered  and  adopted, 
there  still  remain  many  questions  which  can  be  well 
answered  only  by  one  having  a  wide  knowledge  of 
books.  Nor  is  a  general  knowledge  of  books  alone 
enough  to  qualify  one  to  answer  wisely  these  ques- 
tions. Close  acquaintance  with  the  library's  policy 
in  regard  to  book-saving  and  book-buying  and  of 
its  attitude  toward  the  demand  for  popular  and 
ephemeral  fiction;  knowledge  of  its  reference  work; 
of  the  amount  of  handling  its  books  receive  by  the 
public,  and  of  its  financial  condition  and  policy — 
all  this  and  much  besides  the  person  in  charge  of 
binding  should  have  before  she  can  make  wise 
decisions.  And  particularly  she  needs  knowledge  of 
paper,  editions,  prices  and  similar  matters. 

Take  fiction  for  example.  More  than  half  of  the 
binding  bills  of  most  free  public  libraries  are  prob- 
ably chargeable  to  novels.  One  of  these  comes  to 
the  hands  of  the  person  in  charge  of  binding  in  such 
condition  that  at  the  first  glance  it  seems  desirable 
to  rebind  it.  Let  us  suppose  that  it  is  still  in  pub- 
lisher's ^cloth ;  is  quite  soiled  outside,  but  still  fairly 
clean  within;  that  the  cover  has  parted  from  the 

36 


THE    LITERARY    SIDE    OF    LIBRARY    REBINDING      37 

book  in  front;  that  several  leaves  are  loose  and  two 
of  them  frayed  at  the  edges;  that  at  the  back  the 
outside  sheets  of  several  signatures  are  nearly  worn 
through  or  broken;  and  that  the  label  is  off.  Should 
it  be  rebound;  or  what  should  be  done  with  it? 
Before  deciding  its  fate,  questions  like  the  following 
must  be  answered. 

If  this  is  not  the  only  copy  of  this  book  now  in 
the  library,  are  the  other  copies  in  good  condition? 

If  they  are,  can  the  library  spare  this  copy  because 
the  demand  for  this  particular  title  is  past?  And  is 
it  not  better  economy  to  throw  it  away  or  sell  it — 
as  it  will  probably  never  be  wanted  again — than  to 
spend  money  in  binding  it? 

That  is  to  say,  if  it  is  bound,  will  it  not  stand 
idle  on  the  shelf? 

If  it  continues  to  be  somewhat  popular,  and  this 
copy  would  get  some  use  if  it  were  replaced,  still,  is 
it  a  book  the  use  of  which  it  is  the  library's  policy  to 
encourage  ? 

If  not,  has  it  not  served  its  purpose  and  should  it 
not  be  put  away,  rather  than  entail  on  the  library 
another  expense  item  in  cost  of  binding? 

If  it  is  the  only  copy  in  the  library,  is  it  a  book 
the  library  wishes  to  retain  or  has  it  been  in  effect 
on  trial,  and  has  proved  not  to  be  worth  keeping? 

If  so,  would  not  the  binding  of  it  be  a  use  of  money 
far  less  justifiable  than  its  original  purchase? 

Or  is  it  perhaps  of  interest  now  simply  as  a  part 
of  the  history  of  fiction  and  so  still  worth  keeping? 

But,  if  kept  for  this  purpose,  does  it  need  binding 


38  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

at  all?  Will  not  a  little  mending  make  it  hold 
together  sufficiently  well?  Perhaps  the  best  plan 
would  be  to  reclassify  it  for  the  literature  section, 
wrap  it  in  paper,  mark  the  wrapper,  and  put  on  the 
shelf. 

If  it  is  a  good  book,  in  constant  demand,  the 
question  is  still  not  a  simple  one.  Is  it  on  poor 
paper,  so  poor  that  in  our  style  of  rebinding  it  will 
last  but  a  short  time?  If  so,  would  not  a  new  copy 
be  a  better  investment  than  the  rebinding  of  this 
one? 

If  the  paper  is  good  enough  for  rebinding,  will  it 
stand  mending  and  further  wear  without  making  its 
ultimate  binding  very  difficult? 

If  there  are  other  editions  of  this  book  obtainable, 
does  this  sample  indicate  that  this  particular  edition 
is  the  best  one  to  buy  hereafter? 

These  and  many  other  questions  confront  the 
librarian  every  time  a  book,  of  any  kind,  comes  up 
for  binding.  Because  they  are  not  wisely  answered 
the  shelves  of  every  library  show  examples  of  the 
unwise,  expenditure  of  money.  To  take  a  specific 
example  in  this  same  field  of  fiction.  The  library 
has  several  sets  of  Cooper.  In  each  of  them  is  the 
Chainbearer.  Consider  any  one  of  the  library's 
copies  of  this  book:  No  one  reads  it.  But  mere 
shifting  on  the  shelf  gradually  wears  it  out.  It  goes 
through  the  bindery,  and,  being  by  Cooper,  and  a 
novel,  it  is  bound,  in  the  same  style  as  the  Spy  which 
happens  to  go  with  it,  in  half  leather.  The  Spy  is 
used;  the  leather  on  it  keeps  soft  and  pliable  and 


THE    LITERARY    SIDE    OF    LIBRARY    REBINDING      39 

wears  a  year  or  two,  until  the  book  is  too  dirty  to 
keep  it  longer.  But  the  Chainbearer  stands  un- 
touched and  its  leather  hardens  and  breaks.  It 
must  be  bound  again  within  three  or  four  years, 
even  though  it  has  not  been  lent  once  in  that  period. 
If  it  had  received  a  plain  cloth  binding,  that  binding 
would  have  cost  less  and  lasted  indefinitely.  If 
it  had  been  thrown  away  the  library  would  have 
been  the  gainer. 

The  problem  is  not  less  complex  when  books  in 
classes  other  than  fiction  are  up  for  consideration. 
Many  of  them  are  rarely  used;  why  rebind  them  at 
all,  no  matter  how  broken?  To  tie  a  string  about 
them  or  to  wrap  in  paper  and  mark  them  would  often 
be  wiser  economy.  Often  they  are  single  volumes 
from  long  sets,  an  edition,  for  example,  of  some 
history  bound  about  1800.  The  binding  is  calf.  In 
rebinding,  to  match  the  set  is  very  unwise,  for  all 
calf  now  on  the  market  will  rot  in  a  few  years.  It 
must  be  bound,  let  us  suppose,  as  it  is  occasionally 
called  for;  yet  it  will  not,  like  a  popular  novel,  wear 
out  or  become  unbearably  dirty  in  a  half  century. 

Shall  it  be  put  in  morocco?  This  would  be  a 
mistake,  for  it  is  doubtful  if  present-day  morocco 
will  last  50  years,  probably  not  half  that  time.  The 
only  alternative  is  cloth,  and  that  with  no  leather 
title  label  on  the  back.  One  of  the  best  things  is, 
for  a  large  book,  heavy  duck  back,  light  gray  or  light 
green,  lettered  in  printers'  ink,  with  sides  of  any 
good  book  cloth.  This  spoils  the  looks  of  the  set. 
Moreover,  the  cloth  catches  dust  and  dirt,  and  grows 


4O  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

soft  and  flabby.  But  it  is  today  one  of  the  few  safe 
bindings.  If  the  book  is  small,  full  art  canvas  or 
imperial  morocco  cloth  is  better. 

So,  as  I  have  said,  paper,  leather,  cloth,  sewing, 
joints,  gold,  and  many  other  things  the  librarian  must 
know;  and  to  these  must  add  knowledge  of  literary 
values,  popularity  of  books  and  authors,  editions, 
prices  and  a  score  of  other  things  before  he  can  be 
sure,  if  he  ever  can  be  sure,  that  he  is  really  binding 
economically,  in  the  long  run. 


CHAPTER  IV 

Binding  Materials  Suitable  for  a  Library 

The  Newark  Library  has  tried  many  experiments 
in  the  choice  of  materials.  It  finds  that  thin,  im- 
ported, acid-free  pigskin,  first  used  in  this  country 
by  Mr.  Chivers,  is  the  best  material  for  backs.  It 
wears  well;  does  not  rot;  is  easily  manipulated  and 
takes  gold  lettering  well.  A  disadvantage  is  its 
tendency  to  darken  with  handling.  It  works  well 
on  books  of  all  sizes  and  all  kinds,  whether  they  are 
handled  much  or  not. 

Morocco,  if  tanned  so  that  it  will  not  rot,  is  more 
expensive  than  pigskin.  For  the  finer  books  it  is 
better  than  pigskin  as  it  preserves  better  its  appear- 
ance under  much  handling. 

Cowskin  is  good  for  books  which  are  to  be  much 
handled  and  are  likely  to  be  worn  out  and  discarded 
within  five  years.  Only  the  best  quality  should  be 
used.  Dark  red  is  usually  preferable  to  light  red  or 
brown.  It  costs  less  than  pigskin. 

English  Imperial  Morocco  cloth  makes  a  good  full 
binding  for  books  that  are  not  to  receive  much  wear. 
It  cannot  be  lettered  easily,  and  if  much  handled 
soon  looks  dingy  at  the  top  and  bottom  of  the  back 
and  along  the  joint  and  at  the  corners. 

Dark   blue   art   canvas,    the   kind   in   which   both 


42  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

warp  and  woof  are  dyed  blue,  makes  a  serviceable 
and  inexpensive  full  binding.  It  can  be  recom- 
mended for  books  which  are  to  be  handled  but 
little. 

Large  volumes  like  periodicals  and  society  pro- 
ceedings should  have  backs  of  gray  or  light  green 
duck,  with  black  letters,  and  sides  of  art  canvas  or 
morocco  cloth. 

Newspapers  should  also  have  backs  of  duck.  The 
sides  may  be  covered  with  paper,  but  art  canvas  or 
art  vellum  is  better. 

If  newspapers  are  to  be  consulted  often  they 
should  be  carefully  bound  of  course.  But  in  a  great 
many  libraries  it  is  wise  to  tie  most  newspapers  up  in 
flat  packages  instead  of  binding  them. 

For  the  sides  of  books,  bound  with  pigskin  or 
morocco  backs,  which  are  to  be  much  handled  the 
Newark  Library  has  found  nothing  as  good  as  ker- 
atol,  elsewhere  described.  For  books  which  are  not 
to  be  much  handled,  morocco  cloth  is  excellent. 
On  books  which  are  bound  with  an  eye  to  their 
beauty, — curios,  rarities,  books  to  be  exhibited, 
etc. — Newark  uses  three-fourths  morocco  with  sides 
of  paper  or  of  cloth  of  appropriate  color. 

The  joint  committee  on  printing  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  Washington,  D.  C.,  made  an  investi- 
gation in  1907  of  several  binding  materials.  This 
investigation  was  made  with  special  reference  to  the 
binding  of  the  publications  of  the  United  States 
government.  It  included  the  subjects  of  endurance, 
wear,  tensile  strength,  tendency  to  absorb  moisture, 


BINDING.  MATERIALS  SUITABLE  FOR  A  LIBRARY      43 

readiness  with  which  attacked  by  insects.  Inci- 
dentally other  qualities  were  considered. 

An  outcome  of  this  investigation  was  the  publica- 
tion by  the  Bureau  of  Standards,  Washington,  of 
specifications  for  bookcloth  for  binding  depository 
sets  of  public  documents.  The  specifications  state 
that  the  cloth  shall  be  from  first  quality  staple  cot- 
ton, uniformly  woven  and  of  the  grade  known  as 
firsts.  The  surface  shall  be  smooth  and  hard  and 
show  no  tendency  to  stick  when  folded  upon  itself. 
Further  specifications  cover  the  strength  of  the 
material,  its  tendency  to  absorb  moisture,  its  resist- 
ance to  mold  and  insects  and  other  characteristics. 

These  specifications  may  be  used  by  all  librarians 
in  selecting  cloth  for  ordinary  library  binding.  The 
Bureau  of  Standards  will  make  tests  according  to 
the  specifications  for  any  library,  charging  a  fee  for 
the  work.  The  cloth  which  conforms  to  these  specifi- 
cations is  a  smooth  cotton  fabric  similar  to  that 
used  by  the  best  law  book  publishers  in  this  coun- 
try, and  to  the  duck  mentioned  above.  It  is  much 
heavier  than  ordinary  publisher's  book  cloth. 


CHAPTER  V 

Rebinding  for  Libraries 

Libraries  differ  as  to  bindings  in  their  needs  and 
in  their  possibilities.  Books  differ  even  more.  No 
library  can  or  should  exactly  follow  any  one  style 
in  its  rebinding  work.  I  add,  however,  the  follow- 
ing directions  for  ordinary,  much-used  i2mo  volumes, 
in  the  hope  that  they  may  be  found  suggestive.  They 
should  be  read  in  the  light  of  all  the  rest  of  this  book, 
and  not  taken  as  final  authority  at  any  point. 

Pull  apart  with  great  care.  Remove  all  threads 
and  old  paste  and  glue.  Smooth  out  the  backs  by 
beating.  Guard  the  outer  and  inner  leaves  of  all 
signatures  that  are  broken  or  weak  with  paper  or 
jaconet. 

Loose  pictures,  if  they  are  to  be  kept,  put  in  with 
guards.  Frequently  in  rebinding  the  illustrations 
may  be  dropped  with  no  loss  either  to  the  reader's 
pleasure  or  the  cause  of  art. 

See  that  the  leaves  are  all  in  and  complete. 

No.  i.  Books  sewed  regularly,  that  is,  not  whip- 
stitched. Guard  the  first  and  last  signatures  with 
jaconet.  If  the  title-page  or  frontispiece  is  an  insert, 
paste  the  guard  along  the  insert  and  over  the  first 
signature.  This  saves  the  labor  of  guarding  the 
insert  and  first  signature  separately. 


REBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES  4$ 

Guard  with  jaconet  the  inner  side  of  the  inside 
leaf  of  every  signature  that  is  at  all  worn  or  weak; 
if  badly  worn  guard  also  the  outer  side  of  the.  out- 
side leaf.  In  some  cases  every  leaf  should  be  guarded. 
But  remember  that  guards  thicken  the  back. 

Make  two  sets  of  four-page  end-sheets  by  folding 
once  with  the  grain  pieces  of  lithographed  lining 
paper;  and  two  sets  of  waste  papers  by  folding  once 
pieces  of  good  book,  paper,  about  60  Ib.  Guard  the 
outside  of  the  folds  of  all  of  these  with  jaconet,  and 
place  one  of  each  kind  at  the  front  and  back  of  the 
book,  the  lithograph  one  on  the  outside  in  each  case. 

Use  Hayes's  standard  linen  thread  of  a  weight 
adapted  to  the  book.  The  cotton  thread  used  in 
book  sewing  machines  wears  well,  but  is  not  recom- 
mended for  hand-work.  No.  25  is  good  for  books 
with  light  sections,  16  for  those  with  heavy  sections, 
and  20  for  those  with  medium.  Sew  the  book  on 
four  stout  but  flexible  tapes,  each  about  a  quarter 
of  an  inch  wide.  Sew  all  along  throughout. 

Leave  about  three-fourths  of  an  inch  of  tape  pro- 
jecting each  side  when  cutting  off. 

From  here  on  the  process  is  very  similar  for  this 
kind  of  binding  sewed  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  for 
No.  2,  whipstitched,  which  follows. 

No.  2.  Books  which  are  whipstitched,  being  in 
such  condition  or  of  such  character  that  they  have 
to  be  trimmed  at  the  back,  being  then  simply  piles 
of  loose  sheets. 

Cut  off  as  little  of  the  backs  as  possible.  Prepare 
and  place  end  sheets  and  waste  papers  as  above 


46  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

described,  except  here  paste  the  jaconet  guard  only 
along  one  side,  the  outer,  of  the  folds  of  all  of  them. 
This  gives  firm  hold  for  first  overcast  stitches. 

Glue  the  back  of  the  book  slightly  so  that  it  may 
be  divided  into  signatures  of  a  few  leaves  each  which 
will  hold  together. 

Sew  on  same  tapes  as  for  a  regularly  sewed  book. 

In  overcasting  or  whipstitching  do  not  take  up 
more  than  one-eighth  of  an  inch  for  the  deepest 
stitches.  Make  the  signatures  small  and  pass  the 
needle  through  two  of  them  with  each  stitch,  taking 
the  stitch  diagonally. 

Paste  the  lining  papers  to  the  waste  sheets,  all 
over,  front  and  back.  Paste  ends  of  tapes  on  top 
of  lining  papers.  Trim  the  book,  cutting  it  as  little 
as  possible. 

Glue  the  back  slightly,  and,  when  it  is  partly 
dried,  round  the  book  and  then  back  it.  In  back- 
ing do  not  break  the  threads  or  pull  them  through 
the  paper.  This  is  especially  to  be  guarded  against 
on  whipstitched  books. 

After  rounding  and  backing,  glue  to  the  back  and 
over  onto  the  sides,  passing  beyond  the  jaconet  guards, 
a  strip  of  medium  weight,  soft,  bleached  muslin. 

Measure  and  cut  the  boards,  which  should  be  of 
good  quality,  adapted  to  the  wear  the  book  is  likely 
to  have. 

Cut  the  leather  back,  of  pigskin.  Do  not  pare 
it  save  slightly  at  the  edges.  Put  a  little  paste  on 
the  boards  to  make  them  stay  in  place,  and  set  them 
in  place  on  the  book. 


OF 


REBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES  47 

Put  on  the  leather,  leaving  the  boards  in  place, 
tucking  the  leather  in  at  top  and  bottom, — head 
and  tail. 

When  the  leather  is  partly  dried,  the  book  having 
been  kept  under  slight  pressure,  cover  the  boards 
with  keratol  or  appropriate  cloth.  Make  the  corner 
fold  by  first  turning  the  cover  material  in  straight 
across  the  corner  and  then  bringing  in  the  folds 
from  right  and  left.  ' 

Paste  the  end  sheets  firmly  down  on  the  inside  of 
the  covers.  This  fastens  the  book  securely  into  its 
case.  Press  until  thoroughly  dry. 

Letter  in  gold  with  large,  rather  heavy,  black-face 
letters.  Reduce  the  lettering  to  as  few  words  as 
possible. 

No  rule  can  be  given  as  to  the  glue  to  be  used. 
Let  your  binder  be  sure  that  what  he  uses  is  good, 
whether  the  .price  he  pays  be  high  or  low.  He  can 
tell  whether  it  is  good  or  not  by  testing  it.  Glue  pots 
should  be  cleaned  out  frequently.  Glue  should  be 
treated  with  judgment  as  to  heat  and  degree  of 
thickness  at  which  it  is  used.  It  is  animal  matter 
that  quickly  changes  its  character  and  loses  its 
strength  under  wrong  conditions. 

The  boards  to  be  used  in  a  book  should  depend, 
as  to  quality  and  thickness,  on  the  character  of  the 
volume  they  cover.  Expensive  boards  on  a  book 
which  will  probably  soon  be  too  dirty  to  be  kept,  are 
not  essential. 

Neither  strings  nor  tapes  need  to  be  laced  into 
the  boards  on  ordinary  library  work.  They  hold 


48  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

well  if  carefully  glued  down  on  the  inside,  and  very 
well  if  pasted  between  two  boards  or  into  a  split 
in  one. 

Some  books  are  best  bound  with  tight  backs, 
some  with  loose.  There  is  no  invariable  rule  in  regard 
to  this;  it  depends  partly  on  the  thickness  of  the 


Plates 

The  first  diagram  shows  in  section  a  plate  pasted  on  to  a 
leaf  of  a  book.  This  method  is  faulty,  because  it  takes 
up  some  of  the  back  margin  of  the  leaf;  if  the  leaf  is 
pressed  back  the  plate  is  apt  to  split  off. 

The  second  diagram  shows  the  method  of  attaching  a  plate 
by  means  of  a  "guard." 

From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding. 
Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.  London:  Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 


REBINDIXG    FOR    LIBRARIES  49 

book.     Very  thick  volumes  should  have  loose  backs, 
usually. 

It  is  usually  wise  to  trim  books  when  they  are 
rebound.  But  this  trimming  should  of  course  be  as 
little  as  possible. 


Showing  the   Method  of   Lacing  in  the  Slips  or  Ends  of 
Bands  on  a  Flexible  Bound  Book 

If  depressions  are  cut  in  the  board  as  shown,  the  slips  can 
be  left  with  an  adequate  margin  of  strength  without 
clumsiness. 

From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding. 
Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.  London:  Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 

It  is  possible  to  whipstitch  a  book,  even  one  which 
is  printed  on  stiff  paper,  in  such  a  way  that  it  will  be 
almost  as  flexible  and  open  almost  as  easily  as  if  it 
were  sewed  on  tapes  in  the  regular  way.  It  is  pos- 
sible, but  difficult.  Few  have  done  it.  Few  bind- 


50  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

eries,  if  any,  in  this  country  have  workers  who  can 
and  will  give  to  the  work  of  whipstitching  the  care 
and  thought  necessary  to  produce  a  good  job. 

Some  strengthen  the  top  and  bottom  of  the  back, 
the  head  and  tail,  by  a  piece  of  cloth  or  tape  passing 


Showing  the  Advantage  of  a  "French  Joint"  over  an 
Ordinary  Joint 

No.  i.  A  section  of  an  Ordinary  Joint  with  the  board  open 
shows  that  the  creasing  of  the  leather  is  concentrated 
on  one  line. 

No.  2.  A  section  of  a  "French  Joint"  shows  how  this  creas- 
ing is  distributed  over  a  great  surface,  and  so  enables 
sufficient  flexibility  to  be  obtained  with  much  thicker 
leather  than  can  be  used  with  an  ordinary  joint. 

From  report  of  the  Committee  on  Leather  for  Bookbinding. 
Edited  for  Society  of  Arts.  London:  Bell  &  Sons,  1905. 

over  the  back  of  the  signatures  and  held  to  them  by 
the  sewing  in  a  manner  difficult  to  describe. 

Music  should  be  sewed  regularly  or  all  along  and 
the  inside  and  outside  sheets  of  all  signatures  should 
be  guarded  with  jaconet.  This  guarding  of  the  inner 


REBINDIXG    FOR    LIBRARIES  51 


Anatomy  of  a  Joint 
A  Board  of  cover. 
B  B  Bleached  muslin,  pasted  over  back  after  rounding  and 

backing. 

C  C  Strings  or  tapes  on  which  the  book  is  sewn. 
D  D  End  sheets  of  lithograph  paper.     The  part  at  the  left 

is  pasted  to  the  inside  of  the  board  and  becomes  the 

lining  paper.     B    and   C   being   pasted   over  on   to   D, 

when  D  is  pasted  to  A  they  are  carried  with  it  and  lie 

under  the  end  sheet  or  lining  paper. 
E  E  Jaconet  or  thin  muslin  guard  pasted  on  D  before  the 

book  is  sewn. 

F  F  Waste  papers  of  good  book  paper. 
G  G  Jaconet  guard  of  waste   papers.     Before   the   book  is 

trimmed  F   and   D  are  pasted  together  and  become  a 

doubled  fly  leaf. 

H  H  The  first  signature  of  the  book. 
J  J  Jaconet  guard  of  the  first  signature. 
K  K  K  Paths  of  threads. 
L  Leather  back. 
M  Cloth  or  paper  side. 


52  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

sheets  makes  the  binding  stronger,  as  the  inner 
pages  of  a  section  always  tend  to  work  loose  if  much 
handled.  The  side  and  top  squares  should  be  about 
J-  of  an  inch;  but  the  bottom  square  about  f  inch. 
This  large  square  at  the  bottom  raises  the  book  on 
the  instrument  to  allow  the  easy  turning  of  leaves, 
as  the  pages  frequently  catch  when  the  squares  are 
the  usual  size  all  around.  Newark  finds  half  pig 
with  Keratol  sides  very  durable. 

Large  maps,  drawings,  etc.,  may  be  mounted  on 
linen,  jaconet,  nainsook,  ordinary  bleached,  or 
unbleached  muslin.  The  material  used  should  be 
five  or  six  inches  larger  all  around  than  the  map  to 
be  mounted  for  convenience  in  stretching  and  work- 
ing. Tack  the  cloth  on  a  clean  board,  table  or  floor. 
Put  the  tacks  very  close  together  and  tack  the  selvage 
edge  first.  The  surface  may  be  covered  with  waste 
paper  before  stretching  the  cloth  on  it.  Apply  a 
thin  coat  of  thin  paste  all  over.  When  dry,  paste 
the  map  and  allow  it  to  stand  about  ten  minutes  to 
give  it  time  to  stretch.  Lay  the  map  on  the  muslin 
and  rub  it  down  under  a  stout  piece  of  paper.  Thor- 
ough rubbing  down  is  absolutely  necessary  to  make 
every  part  adhere.  Proceed  from  the  center  outward, 
carefully  rubbing  out  creases  and  bubbles.  Dry 
thoroughly  before  taking  up. 

One  person  alone  cannot  mount  a  very  large  sheet. 

Very  small  maps  in  books  which  have  become 
somewhat  worn  and  creased  can  be  mounted  on 
Japanese  mending  tissue.  This  paper  is  quite  tough 
and  thin,  and  wears  well. 


CHAPTER  VI 

Lettering  and  Numbering  the  Backs  of  Books 

Several  methods  of  lettering  the  backs  of  books 
are  in  use  in  libraries.  The  best  is  gilding.  If  this 
is  well  done  with  genuine  gold  it  will  remain  bright 
for  many  years,  and  will  stand  hard  wear  better 
than  any  other  style  of  marking.  On  leather  this 
method  should  always  be  followed.  Only  the  best 
work  in  gilding  is  worth  the  money  it  costs,  and  there 
is  no  substitute  for  gold  that  deserves  mention. 

Gilding  on  cloth  by  hand  is  rather  difficult.  It 
does  not  show  well  on  light-colored  cloth,  or  on  some 
dark  colors.  On  some  cloths,  also,  gold  titles  become 
quite  invisible  in  certain  lights,  probably  because 
of  a  certain  combination  in  them  of  color  and  texture. 
Dark  green  is  often  quite  objectionable  on  this 
account,  and  the  same  is  true  of  some  shades  of  red, 
in  cloths  of  a  certain  texture.  This  difficulty  should 
be  noted,  and  only  those  cloths  used  on  books  which 
are  to  have  gold  titles  on  which  the  letters  show 
well,  at  whatever  angle  the  light  may  strike  them. 

The  process  of  gilding  is  described  in  books  on 
binding.  It  costs  usually  about  two  cents  a  line. 

Black  ink  is  very  good  for  lettering  on  some  kinds 
of  cloth,  particularly  on  light-colored  duck,  canvas, 
buckram,  whether  cotton  or  linen,  and  art  vellum. 


54  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

The  ink  used  should  be  "bookbinder's  title  ink," 
made  for  the  purpose.  The  letters  should  be  large 
and  heavy-faced  and  not  set  very  closely  together. 
The  method  of  applying  the  ink  is  to  pour  some  of 
it  on  a  piece  of  marble  and  then  to  apply  to  the  type 
with  a  rubber  pad.  As  the  type  is  cold,  considerable 
pressure  is  necessary  to  make  the  ink  take  well. 
Black  lettering  costs  about  the  same  as  gilding,  say, 
two  cents  per  line. 

Letters  in  gold  are  sometimes  applied  to  books 
bound  in  cloth  by  printing  them  on  a  very  thin  piece 
of  leather  and  then  gluing  the  latter  to  the  back. 
This  method  is  also  occasionally  used  on  books  in 
leather.  These  leather  labels  can  be  stamped  by 
machinery  in  quantities,  as  is  done  for  large  editions 
by  commercial  binders,  though  this  is  not  practicable 
for  the  ordinary  library  binder.  They  usually  look 
very  well  when  first  applied;  but  it  is  not  very  easy 
to  make  them  hold  permanently. 

The  better  method  in  almost  all  cases  is  to  letter 
directly  on  the  book,  no  matter  what  material  it  is 
bound  in. 

The  binder  should  use  brass  type  letters  in  most 
cases;  they  wear  well  and  give  a  clear  impression. 
Ordinary  printer's  type  will  do  excellent  work  for 
a  time.  Brass  type  costs  from  10  to  20  cents  per 
letter,  common  type  from  one  to  five  dollars  per 
font,  according  to  size  and  number  of  types.  The 
best  style  for  ordinary  use  is  condensed  gothic.  A 
heavy-faced  Roman,  like  Jensen,  is  sometimes  good, 
and  on  larger  books  looks  very  well  in  capitals  and 


LETTERING  AND  NUMBERING  THE  BACKS  OF  BOOKS    55 

small  letters.  Use  as  large  letters  as  the  back  of 
the  book  will  permit.  Reduce  the  number  of  words 
in  all  titles  to  the  lowest  possible  number. 

Samples  of  type  well  adapted  to  lettering  in  gold 
on  the  backs  of  books: 

Sample  i — Gothic  condensed,  18  point. 

CARNEGIE  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

Free  for  the  people 

Sample  2 — Schoeffer,  18  point. 

CARNEGIE  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 
Free  for  the  people 

Sample  3 — Lining  condensed  title,  12  point. 

CAENEGIE  PUBLIC  LIBKARY 
Free  for  the  people 

Titles  can  be  printed  on  paper  also  and  the  paper 
then  pasted  or  glued  on.  This  plan  is  not  at  all 
satisfactory  for  books  which  are  to  have  much  use, 
as  the  paper  soon  gets  soiled  and  is  very  apt  to  peel  off. 

Many  libraries  have  bound  books  in  light-colored 
cloth,  usually  art  vellum,  and  then  lettered  them  by 
hand  with  india-ink.  The  result  is  not  very  satis- 
factory. The  time  taken  in  lettering  them  neatly  is 
considerable;  the  letters  soon  get  soiled  and  illegible, 
and  even  if  very  well  done  they  look  cheap  and  home- 
made. At  the  ordinary  cost  of  gilding,  about  two 
cents  per  line,  hand  lettering  is  almost  as  expensive 
as  gilding  if  the  cost  of  the  time  spent  on  it  is  fairly 


56  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

estimated.  Then,  to  make  them  legible,  the  cloth 
chosen  must  be  so  light  in  color  that  it  soon  shows 
the  results  of  handling  and  becomes  dingy  and  dis- 
reputable. A  dark  cloth  of  the  best  quality  and 
gold  letters  pay  best. 

On  books  bound  in  dark  cloth  or  leather,  numbers 
can  be  written  in  white  ink.     Some  librarians  find 


Type  Cabinet 

this  plan  quite  satisfactory.  The  method  is  this: 
The  place  for  the  number  being  located,  wash  the 
varnish  away  from  it  with  a  clean  cloth,  dampened 
with  a  mixture  of  ammonia  one  part  and  water  two 
parts,  and  allow  to  dry.  Then  write  the  letters 
with  a  fine  camel's  hair  brush,  about  No.  2  in  size. 
When  thoroughly  dry  give  the  letters  a  thin  coat 


LETTERING  AND  NUMBERING  THE  BACKS  OF  BOOKS    57 

of  shellac.  David's  white  letterine  is  one  of  the 
best  white  inks.  White  ink  is  difficult  to  manage 
and  wears  off  soon  if  not  very  carefully  put  on. 

Labels  should  always  be  put  at  least  four  inches 
from  the  bottom  of  the  back,  the  tail,  that  they 
may  not  be  soiled  or  worn  off  in  handling.  They 
should  be  marked  with  india-ink  in  large,  plain  figures. 
On  many  books  it  will  pay  to  have  them  gilded,  as 
when  thus  put  on  they  do  not  detract  from  the 
book's  appearance  and  look  well  for  an  indefinite 
time.  If  labels  are  used,  put  them  on  as  follows: 
The  place  for  the  label  being  located,  wash  away 
the  varnish  from  that  place  a  little  with  a  clean 
cloth  dampened  with  water  and  ammonia.  If -the 
book  is  thin  cut  the  label  before  it  is  put  on,  so 
that  it  does  not  quite  reach  the  edges  of  the  back. 
If  the  book  is  so  thin  that  there  would  not  be  sufficient 
room  for  the  book  number  on  a  label  cut  to  fit 
it,  place  the  label  on  the  upper  left  corner  of  the 
front  cover.  Press  the  label  tightly  and  evenly  down 
until  it  sticks  firmly  all  over.  This  is  most  important. 
Use  Dennison's  round  gummed  labels.  These,  being 
round,  present  no  corners  to  be  easily  ruffed  up. 
They  are  free  from  lines  around  the  border,  so  their 
whole  surface  is  available  for  the  book  number. 
They  can  be  had  in  several  sizes. 

Lay  out  a  scheme  for  marking  books,  and  then 
make  model  labels  to  be  followed  in  marking  fiction, 
classed  books,  reference  books,  juveniles,  magazines, 
etc.,  so  that  the  same  kinds  of  combinations  of  letters 
and  figures  will  always  be  written  in  the  same  way. 


CHAPTER  VII 

Pamphlets 

The  subject  of  the  care  of  pamphlets  in  a  library 
does  not  come  within  the  field  of  these  notes;  but  it 
may  be  proper  to  say  that  experience  and  observa- 
tion have  led  me  to  the  conclusion  that  many  pam- 
phlets are  bound  and  entered  in  the  catalog  which 
are  not  worth  the  labor  they  have  entailed.  How 
those  should  be  kept  that  are  thought  worth  keep- 
ing I  do  not  attempt  to  say.  Often  those  kept  are 
not  worth  keeping,  and  still  oftener  those  bound 
and  catalogued  are  not  worth  binding.  If  they  are 
bound,  the  style  of  binding  they  should  receive,  if 
they  are  in  fact  books  in  paper  covers,  is  to  be  decided 
by  the  same  rules  as  is  the  same  question  in  regard 
to  other  books.  If  they  are  in  fact  pamphlets — a 
few  pages  with  no  cover,  and  must  stand  on  the 
shelf  and  will  be  little  used,  a  cheap  binding  may  be 
made  thus:  Take  off  the  cover;  fold  once  a  sheet 
of  stout  paper  to  the  pamphlet's  size;  cut  two  boards 
for  covers,  a  little  narrower  than  the  pamphlet; 
paste  them  to  the  paper  mentioned  about  half 
an  inch  apart;  paste  a  strip  of  book  cloth  down 
the  back  and  over  the  edges  of  the  boards;  paste 
the  cover  to  the  boards,  front  and  back;  sew  the 
pamphlet  into  the  case  thus  roughly  made  with 

58 


PAMPHLETS  59 

stout  thread  through  three  or  five  holes  along  the 
back  (this  last  process  is  called  stabbing);  trim. 
This  is  simple,  strong  and  inexpensive. 

If  the  pamphlet  consists  of  one  signature  only  the 
method  just  described  can  be  followed;  but  the  sew- 
ing should  be  through  the  back,  a  saddlestitch,  with 
the  knot  inside.  The  binder's  knot  or  stitch  is  thus 
made:  Having  three  holes  for  the  thread,  go  first 
down  through  the  center  one,  back  through  one  of 
the  end  holes,  down  again  through  the  other  end 
hole,  up  through  the  center,  and  tie  the  two  ends 
over  the  thread  which  passes  from  end  hole  to  end 
hole.  With  five  holes  the  process  is  similar  and 
easily  followed. 

A  very  neat  pamphlet  binding,  for  pamphlets  too 
large  to  be  saddle-stitched,  is  the  following: 

Cut  two  pieces  of  smooth,  hard,  "flat"  paper  the 
size  of  the  pamphlet ;  along  one  edge  of  each  paste  a 
strip  of  thin  cotton  cloth,  bleached  muslin,  about  half 
an  inch  wide ;  lay  one  piece  each  side  of  the  pamphlet, 
cloth  strips  at  the  back,  and  sew  the  pamphlet  through 
these  strips,  close  to  the  back,  with  three  holes  or 
five  as  seems  advisable.  Make  two  end-sheets  of  two 
leaves  each,  the  size  .of  the  pamphlet;  guard  each 
with  muslin;  paste  these  to  the  first  sheets,  all  over, 
one  on  each  side  of  the  pamphlet;  cut  boards  and 
paste  them  down  on  the  outer  halves  of  the  end- 
sheets  (each  end-sheet  has  now  become,  one-half  the 
lining  paper  for  the  cover,  the  other  half,  half  of  a 
double  fly  leaf) ;  put  on  a  back  of  art  vellum,  leather 
or  other  material;  paste  on  the  pamphlet's  cover; 


60  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

trim.  This  binding  is  very  strong,  very  neat,  opens 
quite  easily  and  will  wear  well.  The  boards  can  be 
covered  all  over  with  cloth,  and  the  binding  will 
then  wear  much  longer. 

Ballard's  clips  find  favor  with  many  librarians,  for 
both  pamphlets  and  magazines.  They  hold  things 
together  neatly  and  securely,  and  hold  magazines 
into  covers  of  cloth  or  leather  quite  effectively. 
They  are  strips  of  sheet  steel,  of  several  widths,  bent 
into  about  three-fourths  of  a  circle.  Small  steel 
levers  fit  into  cleverly  adjusted  holes  and  make 
opening  easy. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

Magazine  Binders 

It  has  long  been  one  of  the  library  traditions  that 
magazines  used  in  the  reading  room  should  be  put 
into  stiff  and  heavy  temporary  binders  as  soon  as 
received,  and  so  arranged,  usually  on  racks  holding 
them  vertically,  that  they  can  all  be  seen  at  once. 
It  is  now  permitted  to  doubt  the  wisdom  of  this 
proceeding.  The  binders  are  expensive;  the  best 
of  them  soon  get  a  worn  and  dingy  look,  even  if  they 
hold  together  for  a  long  time ;  the  racks  with  their 
contents  are  usually  not  ornamental  and  are  often 
quite  the  reverse.  The  space  taken  by  the  racks  can 
ill  be  spared,  especially  when  the  area  needed  by 
browsers  in  front  of  them  is  included.  If  the  num- 
ber of  periodicals  taken  is  quite  large  the  display 
space  needed  for  them  is  quite  out  of  proportion  to 
the  use  made  of  them.  Recent  back  numbers  of 
most  journals,  as  well  as  the  last  numbers,  should 
be  made  accessible  to  readers,  and  for  this  there  is 
no  provision  in  the  vertical  file  arrangement.  There 
seems  no  better  reason  for  exposing  to  the  casual 
reader  of  the  reading  room  the  full  fronts  of  all  the 
journals  the  library  takes  than  there  is  for  making 
a  similar  display  of  all  the  books  the  library  buys. 

To  the   display  of  all  journals  on  terrace  tables 

61 


62  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

most  of  the  objections  just  noted  are  also  applicable. 
A  careful  consideration  of  the  relative  value  of  current 
numbers  of  periodicals  in  a  library  and  of  space, 
time  and  energy  that  should  be  put  on  their  presen- 
tation to  the  public,  will  lead  one  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  best  way  to  handle  them  is  to  lay  them  in 
alphabetical  order  on  plainly  labeled  ordinary  book 
shelves  wide  enough  to  hold  the  larger  ones,  set  about 
six  inches  apart,  that  the  numbers  for  the  past  six 
months  may  be  kept  together. 

The  thin  journals  which  are  most  read,  like  "  Puck  " 
or  the  "Scientific  American,"  may  well  be  slipped 
for  a  week  into  an  inexpensive  binder  like  the  one 
called  "Cleveland"  in  the  list  which  follows.  Maga- 
zines much  read,  like  the  " Century"  and  "  McClures," 
can  be  so  reinforced  in  a  few  minutes,  as  described 
below,  that  they  will  keep  quite  neat  for  several 
months. 

This  method  is  economical  of  space;  keeps  the 
journals  easily  in  one  alphabetical  series;  makes 
six  numbers  accessible  instead  of  one;  eliminates 
the  question  of  binders;  saves  the  assistant's  time, 
relatively  to  the  service  given  to  the  public ;  and  asks 
the  public  simply  to  remember  their  alphabet  and 
to  read  the  shelves. 

Binders  that  require  the  punching  of  holes  through 
the  backs  of  magazines  should  be  looked  on  with 
suspicion;  though  in  spite  of  its  expense  the  binder 
of  this  type,  with  flexible  metal  strips  in  place  of 
strings  and  with  polished  sides  containing  actual 
covers  of  the  magazine  within,  has  had  much  use. 


MAGAZINE    BINDERS  63 

It  wears  well,  is  put  on  about  as  quickly  as  any, 
exposes  the  date  and  name  along  the  magazine's 
back,  and  looks  more  attractive  than  any  other 
binder  when  perched  in  rows  in  vertical  racks. 

All  other  binders  may  be  divided  into  three  kinds : 
The  Clip,  the  Bar  and  the  String. 

The  Clip  is  based  on  the  Ballard  clip  idea.  The 
Johnston  is  a  good  example.  A  spring  in  the  back 
grips  the  sides  of  the  magazine  and  holds  the  binder 
on.  It  tends  to  make  a  magazine  less  easy  to  hold 
open.  It  pleases  a  good  many. 

The  Bar  has  for  its  main  feature  one  or  more 
strips  of  steel,  which  run  down  the  back  of  the  maga- 
zine and  are  fastened  to  the  binder  by  a  hinge  at 
one  end  and  a  hook  at  the  other.  Of  all  of  this 
kind  the  best  for  the  money  is.  perhaps,  the  New 
Haven. 

The  String  uses  a  string  or  elastic  band  to  hold  the 
maga'zine.  In  the  one  called  the  Springfield,  first 
used  in  Los  Angeles  in  1890,  the  string  passes  through 
the  magazine,  between  sections,  and  through  three 
holes  in  the  back  of  the  binder  in  a  binder's  stitch. 

The  Newark  Library  has  tried  many  kinds  of 
material  for  binders.  Thin  book  cloth  soon  wears 
out.  Heavy  and  strong  cloth  soon  gets  soiled. 
Full  leather  is  very  expensive,  unless  the  leather 
used  is  light  and  poor,  and  then  it  soon  wears  out. 
Good  leather  backs  outwear  sides  of  any  cloth.  A 
Cleveland  binder  made  for  "Harper's  Weekly,"  with 
heavy  cowskin  back  and  keratol  sides,  was  in  con- 
stant use  for  30  months  and  looked  well  nearly  all 


64  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

that  time.  It  costs  70  cents.  The  few  binders  now 
used  in  the  Newark  reading  room  are  made  in  this 
style. 

Covers  of  strong  paper  pasted  to  the  outsides  of 
single  copies  of  magazines  to  protect  them  during 
reading-room  use  or  for  lending,  the  Newark  Library 
has  not  found  satisfactory.  We  reinforce  the  covers 
of  single  magazines  for  this  purpose  as  follows  and 
find  the  method  quite  satisfactory : 

If  the  original  cover  is  loose,  take  it  off  and  paste 
on  again  carefully.  Line  the  cover  with  thin,  white 
bond  paper,  pasted  on  all  over  and  lapping  a  half- 
inch  onto  the  magazine  itself.  Press  for  ten  minutes 
in  a  copying  press.  Paste  a  strip  of  thin  dark- 
colored  book  cloth  down  the  back  on  the  outside. 
Put  under  moderate  pressure  until  dry.  Write  the 
name  and  date  of  the  magazine  on  the  strip  of  cloth 
with  white  ink. 

Sew  large  magazines  like  the  "Ladies'  Home 
Journal"  into  covers  of  stout  paper.  A  strip  of 
paper  an  inch  and  a  half  wide  placed  in  the  center 
of  the  section  through  which  the  magazine  is  sewed 
keeps  the  sewing  from  tearing  the  paper. 

Single  copies  of  magazines  can  be  bound  for  lend- 
ing, at  about  15  cents  each,  in  this  manner:  Take 
off  covers ;  trim ;  remove  table  of  contents  if  it  faces 
the  cover;  paste  strip  of  strong  cotton  cloth  down 
the  back,  and  extending  about  an  inch  over  the 
sides;  staple  this  on  with  at  least  three  staples  in 
the  same  line  with  the  staples  which  hold  the  -maga- 
zine together,  or  sew  with  stout  thread  through  five 


MAGAZINE    BINDERS  65 

holes;  cut  covers  as  for  an  ordinary  binding;  paste 
them  to  the  strip;  cover  all  over  with  art  vellum; 
line  covers  with  paper  (this  lining  can  be  put  on 
all  over  as  the  first  step  in  the  process,  and  pasted 
to  the  covers  after  they  are  on,  thus  forming  the  end 
paper);  paste  the  front  cover  of  the  magazine  on 
the  front  in  such  a  way  that  the  date  line  down  the 
back  comes  on  the  back  of  the  new  cover.  This 
is  neat,  convenient  and  quite  durable. 

A  few  of  the  more  popular  binders  are  listed  below. 
The  material  used  to  cover  them  can  be  endlessly 
varied. 

1 .  The  New  Haven  Binder,  designed  by  Mr.  W.  K. 
Stetson,    Librarian   of   the    Public    Library   of   New 
Haven.    A  solid  back  of  metal.    A  metal  rod  hinged 
at   one   end   passes   through   the   middle   section   of 
the   magazine.    The   free   end  of  the  rod  is  formed 
into    a   hook   which,    being   slipped    under   a   metal 
loop    attached   to  the  back  of  the  binder,  holds  the 
magazine    firmly    in    place.     Costs    from    85    cents 
to  $1.15.     A  simpler   binder,  also    designed   by    Mr. 
Stetson    and    made   on   the   same  principles,  sells  at 
55  cents. 

2.  The    Johnston    Binder,    made    by  William    G. 
Johnston  &  Co.,  Pittsburgh,  Pa.,  has  a  round  steel 
spring  back  which  grips  the  magazine.     Costs  from 
75  cents  up,  according  to  size. 

3.  The  Boston  Binder,  made  by  the  Office,  Bank 
and  Library  Co.,  157  Summer  St.,  Boston.    A  rounded 
wooden  back  supports  the  binding  device  which  con- 
sists of  two  bars  of  steel  pivoted  at  one  end  and 


66  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

fastened  at  the  other  with   a  pin.     Costs  from   75 
cents  to  $2.00  according  to  size  and  material  used. 

4.  The    Torsion    Binder,    made    by    the    Barrett 
Bindery  Co.,  180-182  Monroe  St.,  Chicago.    Two  flat 
steel  wires  are  hinged  to  the  binder  at  the  top  and 
fitted  with  knobs  at  the  free  ends.    These  pass  inside 
the  magazine   and   a  slight  pressure  on  the   knobs 
sends  the  free  ends  of  the  wires  into  an  inclined  slot. 
Costs  from   95   cents  to   $4.50  according  to  size  and 
material  used. 

5.  The   Springfield   Binder  has   a  strip   down   the 
back   of  a   simple   cover   or   case,   with   three   holes 
punched  therein  through  which  the  magazine  is  laced 
in  by  strings.     Shoe  strings  or  tape  may  be  used. 
Costs  from  25  cents  up. 

6.  The  Chivers  Binder,  made  by  Cedric  Chivers, 
Bath,    England,   and   Brooklyn,    N.   Y.,   is   like   the 
Springfield  cover,  but  with  a  separate  flat  brass  rod 
around    which    the    magazine    is    sewed    into    the 
cover. 

7.  The  Weis  Binder,  made  by  the  Weis  Co.,  Toledo, 
Ohio,  has  metal  grooves  in  the  back  which  hold  the 
magazine. 

8.  The  Buchan  Binder,  made  by  Buchan  Mfg.  Co., 
Newark,  N.  J.,  has  a  steel  back  which  consists  of  a 
hinge  regulated  by  a  screw.     One  or  more  magazines 
may  be  kept  in  the  binder.     Good  for  magazines  that 
are  poorly  put  together. 

9.  The    Roedde    Magazine    Binder,    made   by   the 
Flexible  Back  Looseleaf  Ledger  Co.,  Buffalo,  N.  Y., 
varies     somewhat    from    the    Torsion    and    Boston 


MAGAZINE    BINDERS  67 

Binders,  but  is  built  on  the  same  principle.     Costs 
from  $1.10  to  $8.00. 

10.  Cleveland    Binder,    so    called    because    much 
used  in  the  Cleveland  Library.     A  simple  cover  or 
case  in  the  back  of  which  are  holes  half  an  inch  from 
the  top  and  bottom;  through  these  a  piece  of  narrow 
elastic    is    sewed.      The    magazine,    opened    at    the 
middle   of  a   section,,  is   slipped   under  the   elastic. 
Recommended  for  weekly  journals. 

11.  Klip  Binder,  made  by  H.   H.   Ballard,   Pitts- 
field,  Mass.     A  simple  cover  attached  to  the  maga- 
zine by  a  pair  of  steel  clips,  put  on  with  keys.    Price 
of  klips,  50  cents  per  box  of  10. 

12.  The    Philadelphia    Binder,    made    by    G.    D. 
Emerson,    Philadelphia,    Pa.      A  rod  passes  through 
the  magazine  and  springs  into  hooks  at  each   end 
of  the  back. 


CHAPTER  IX 

Repairing  Books,  General  Rules 

The  universal  rule  in  this  matter  is,  don't.  To 
this  there  are  exceptions;  but  many  if  not  most  of 
the  books  which  are  repaired  are  so  injured  by  the 
process  itself,  or  by  the  wear  they  receive  after  they 
are  repaired,  that  it  would  have  been  better  for 
them  if  they  had  not  been  repaired  at  all,  but  sent 
direct  to  the  binder. 

Librarians  do  not  pay  sufficient  attention  to  book 
surgery. 

All  repairing  of  books  should  be  done  by  skilled 
persons.  The  question  of  whether  or  not  repairs 
shall  be  made  at  all  should  be  decided  by  a  person 
who  has  not  only  technical  skill  in  repairing;  but 
also  knowledge  of  the  use  to  which  the  book  in  hand 
is  likely  to  be  subjected.  This,  because  in  many 
cases  it  will  be  evident  to  a  person  who  knows  about 
the  use  the  books  are  to  have  that  certain  of  them 
should  not  be  repaired  at  all,  no  matter  if  in  quite 
a  dilapidated  condition,  with  loose  covers  and  loose 
leaves;  but  should  be  neatly  wrapped  in  good  manila 
paper,  labeled  plainly  on  the  back  and  set  again  on 
the  shelf.  The  few  times  in  a  year  when  little-used 
books  are  wanted  do  not,  in  many  cases,  warrant 
their  rebinding.  Repairs  on  them,  no  matter  how 

68 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    GENERAL    RULES  69 

well  done,  are  likely  to  injure  them.  Books  which 
are  rarely  borrowed,  even  though  they  are  used 
occasionally,  or  are  even  a  good  deal  handled  because 
they  stand  near  books  which  are  much  used,  should 
perhaps  be  mended  a  little;  loose  leaves  should  be 
tipped  in,  at  least.  But  work  on  them  beyond  that 
is  often  injurious. 

The  feeling  that  all  books  in  a  library  should  be 
neatly  bound  has  caused  much  unnecessary  expense. 

In  most  libraries  of  moderate  size  and  in  all  large 
ones,  there  should  be  a  supervisor  of  binding  and 
repairs;  a  person  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  whole 
routine  of  library  work,  familiar  also  with  literature, 
keeping  close  watch  of  the  rise  and  fall  in  popularity 
of  new  books.  Such  a  person  could  say,  for  example, 
that  the  library's  third  copy  of  the  Valley  of  Decision 
and  the  fourth  copy  of  the  Crisis,  if  ready  for  repair- 
ing or  rebinding,  could  with  good  economy  be  placed 
on  a  reserve  shelf,  not  accessible  to  the  public,  there 
to  be  held  until  the  delivery  desk  assistants  find  a 
call  for  them.  That  is,  she  would  know  that  with 
two  or  three  copies  in  good  condition  of  these  books 
in  circulation  there  would  almost  always  be  one  in 
the  library.  When  the .  library's  stock  of  such  books 
as  those  named  becomes  reduced  to  one  sound  copy 
she  can  then  tell,  from  the  demand  for  it,  if  it  is 
wise  to  bind  one  copy,  or  all;  or  if  it  is  wise  to  do 
more  than  mend. 

This  omniscient  person  who  has  charge  of  binding 
and  repairs,  reports  to  the  head  of  the  library  that 
such  and  such  books  are  past  repairs;  that  they  will 


70  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

cost  35  to  50  cents  apiece  to  be  properly  rebound, 
and  asks,  "Will  the  library  ever  want  them  again?" 
If  not,  then  she  will  advise  that  they  be  given  away 
and  their  cards  removed  from  the  catalog.  Or,  if 
they  must  be  kept  for  historical  or  religious  or 
superstitious  or  other  reasons  she  will  advise  that 
they  be  neatly  tied  up  in  paper,  labeled,  and  put 
back  on  the  shelf. 

Knowledge  of  the  art  of  mending  implies  not  only 
knowledge  of  the  process  of  making  a  book  by 
machinery  and  by  hand;  but  also  knowledge  of  the 
different  kinds  of  paper,  how  they  wear,  if  they 
break  easily,  if  they  will  soon  grow  brittle,  and  the 
effect  on  them  of  attempts  to  hold  them  with  paste 
or  glue. 

Along  with  this  knowledge  should  also  go  knowl- 
edge of  the  cost  of  each  individual  book,  and  such 
knowledge  of  their  use  as  will  enable  the  repairer  to 
decide  at  once  whether  10,  20,  or  30  cents  spent  in 
repairs  will  or  will  not  pay. 

As  long  as  there  are  so  few  assistants  who  are  at 
all  familiar  with  paper,  type,  binding,  literary  quality, 
popularity,  cost,  etc.,  it  is  well  to  discourage  almost 
all  book  repairs. 

As  soon  as  we  admit,  as  we  must,  that  a  good 
book,  costing  from  one  to  two  dollars,  must  be 
mended  carefully  if  at  all,  we  have  opened  the  door 
for  a  large  expense.  An  assistant  can  easily  spend 
an  hour  or  two  on  a  book,  repairing  its  cover,  mend- 
ing a  few  leaves  and  putting  it  in  order.  When  she 
gets  through  she  will  have  put  from  30  to  50  cents' 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    GENERAL    RULES  71 

worth  of  time  into  it,  has  probably  permanently 
injured  it,  and  in  a  few  months  or  years  it  will  be 
in  worse  condition  than  if  she  had  never  touched 
it  at  all.  Moreover,  the  same  amount  of  money 
put  out  in  cash  instead  of  time  would  in  many  cases 
have  rebound  it. 

In  a  measure  the  remarks  just  made  apply  even 
to  popular  books,  much  used  by  children  or  adults. 
It  is  easy  to  spend  more  money  in  mending  them 
than  good  economy  can  justify.  Mend  sparingly; 
rebind  early. 

The  reason  for  this  warning  against,  mending  lies 
in  the  anatomy  of  the  book  and  the  injury  it  receives 
from  handling  after  it  begins  to  break  up,  and  espe- 
cially after  its  first  breaks  have  been  mended  by  a 
prentice  hand. 

The  weakest  point  in  a  book  is  the  joint..  In 
publishers'  binding  of  today  this  joint  is  made  by 
a  piece  of  super,  which  is  glued  to  the  back  of  the 
book  and  then  to  the  inside  of  the  cover,  plus  the 
end  paper  which  is  pasted  over  it  and  also  onto  the 
cover.  This  super  is  weak.  If  it  is  put  on  with  a 
poor  glue  that  glue  soon  grows  hard  and  the  joint 
is  further  weakened  thereby.  It  breaks  or  tears 
easily.  Also,  it  parts  easily  from  the  back  to  which 
it  is  glued  and  from  the  cover.  No  strings  or  tapes 
pass  from  the  book  to  cover.  When  the  joint  once 
comes  loose  from  either  back  or  cover,  or  breaks, 
it  cannot  well  be  either  attached  or  mended  again. 
It  is  sometimes  possible  to  take  a  broken  book  out 
of  its  case  entirely,  remove  the  old  and  attach  new 


72  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

super,  add  new  end  sheets,  put  it  again  into  the 
case  and  get  considerable  use  from  it.  But  any 
other  kind  of  mending  of  the  joint  is  almost  futile 
and  even  this  is  injurious.  And  the  better  such 
mending  seems  at  first  to  succeed,  the  greater  the 
harm  it  is  really  doing  to  the  whole  book.  For  the 
mending  usually  consists  in  pasting  a  strip  of  strong 
paper  or  cloth  along  the  joint.  This  simply  con- 
veys the  strain  from  the  joint  proper,  where  it  be- 
longs, to  the  first  leaf  of  the  first  signature.  This 
is  only  paper,  usually  poor  at  that.  It  soon  breaks 
and  lets  its  other  half  loose.  Very  commonly  other 
injuries  are  worked  at  the  same  time.  The  book 
gets  loose  again,  if  it  was  ever  really  tightened.  The 
super  with  hard  glue  attached  rubs  about  on  the 
backs  of  the  signatures;  several  of  them  are  cut 
through,  and  the  possibility  of  a  rebinding  with 
proper  sewing  is  either  gone  forever  or  can  be 
regained  only  after  the  long  labor  of  mending  many 
signatures. 

When  the  cords  or  bands  are  broken  in  a  book 
in  which  they  are  used  it  is  as  useless  to  attempt 
to  fasten  book  and  cover  together  as  it  is  when  the 
super  gives  way  in  publishers'  binding. 

Loose  leaves  appear  earliest  in  books  printed  on 
paper  which  is  so  heavy  that  it  breaks  almost  as 
soon  as  it  is  folded.  If  the  loose  leaves  of  such 
.books  are  tipped  in  they  tend  to  tear  out  with  them 
the  ones  they  are  tipped  onto.  Leaves  should  rarely 
be  tipped  into  books  which  have  never  been  rebound. 
In  rebound  books  which  are  in  their  last  days  and 


REPAIRING  BOOKS,  GENERAL  RULES        73 

will  never  be  rebound  again  it  is  sometimes  proper 
to  tip  in. 

Full-page  illustrations  which  come  loose  can  in 
most  cases  be  left  out  to  advantage.  To  tip  them 
in  again  hurts  the  leaves  they  are  fastened  to.  They 
are  usually  so  poor  that  it  is  a  kindness  to  the  reader 
to  throw  them  away. 

In  the  long  run  a  book  needing  more  than  very 
slight  repairs  will  give  better  return  if  so  rebound 
•at  once  that  it  will  hang  together  until  so  dirty 
that  it  will  have  to  be  thrown  away. 

Some  books,  especially  some  of  those  printed  on 
cheap,  heavy,  coated  paper,  will  never  pay  to  rebind. 
They  should  be  mended,  each  according  to  its  con- 
stitution, and  when  beyond  mending  thrown  away. 

Good  general  rules  for  mending  books  are  few. 
The  first  and  most  important  of  all  is:  Be  sparing 
with  paste  or  other  stickist.  Another  is :  If  a  machine- 
bound  book  is  broken  at  the  joint,  the  cover  beginning 
to  part  from  the  back,  send  it  straight  to  the  binder. 

The  best  plan  is  to  buy  your  books  as  far  as  possi- 
ble properly  bound  for  library  use  direct  from  the 
publishers'  sheets.  Such  books  never  need  mend- 
ing or  rebinding.  Being  flexible  and  easily  opened 
their  leaves  are  rarely  torn ;  and,  for  the  same  reason, 
getting  no  hard  pressure  from  moist  or  dirty  hands 
in  trying  to  keep  them  open,  their  leaves  keep  clean 
for  a  long  time. 

Books  not  thus  bound  in  the  first  place  should 
be  rebound  in  first-class  manner  when  they  begin 
to  break.  Parsimony  in  rebinding  is  a  library  thief. 


CHAPTER  X 

Repairing  Books,  Newark  Methods 

Books  are  sent  to  the  bindery  and  repair  depart- 
ment from  the  delivery  department,  as  the  head  of 
the  latter  department  may  direct;  and  the  head  of 
the  bindery  department,  or  some  one  under  her 
direction,  is  constantly  looking  over  the  shelves  for 
books  that  need  attention. 

In  the  repair  department,  which  attends  to  the 
repair  of  books  and  to  the  sending  of  those  needing 
binding  to  the  bindery,  these  directions  are  followed: 

When  a  book  looks  dilapidated,  note  carefully  its 
condition  throughout.  Consider  these  questions  in 
regard  to  it:  Is  it  worth  repairing?  Should  it  be 
covered?  Should  it  be  rebound?  Should  it  be  dis- 
carded? No  general  rules  can  be  given  by  which  to 
answer  these  queries.  Each  case  must  be  decided 
by  itself. 

General  cleaning.  Look  through  book;  turn  out 
corners  of  leaves  which  have  been  turned  in;  mend 
torn  leaves  with  transparent  mending  paper,  or 
Japanese  mending  tissue;  erase  dirt  and  pencil  marks. 

Pencil  marks.  For  removing  soil  and  pencil  marks, 
we  have  tried  the  Ruby,  Cerise,  and  Ideal  erasers, 
Art  gum,  and  ivory  soap  and  water.  We  like  the 
Cerise,  manufactured  by  Eberhard  Faber,  as  having 

74      ' 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  75 

more  grit  than  the  Ruby  and  yet  not  injurious  to 
the  paper. 

Torn  leaves.  Ordinary  circulating  books  are  best 
mended  with  narrow  strips  of  Japanese  tissue  and 
paste.  This  is  cheaper  than  commercial  gummed 
paper  and  is  preferable  to  it  also,  as  the  mucilage 
on  the  latter  grows  dark  and  brittle  in  a  short  time. 
Dennison's  adhesive  .tape  costs  about  three  cents 
for  a  roll  of  four  yards,  while  one  sheet  of  Japanese 
tissue,  costing  two  and  a  quarter  cents,  cuts  into  46 
yards  of  strips  the  width  of  Dennison's. 

Torn  leaves  in  choice  books  may  thus  be  mended: 
Match  the  edges  of  the  tear  carefully  and  apply  a 
narrow  line  of  paste  along  them.  Lay  over  this  a 
piece  of  Japanese  tissue  larger  than  the  tear,  and  rub 
it  down  very  lightly.  Repeat  this  on  the  other  side 
of  the  leaf  and  put  under  moderate  pressure.  When 
dry,  pull  off  all  the  tissue  that  will  come  away  easily. 

Cleaning  publishers'  bindings.  Often  there  are  a 
few  spots  on  books  which  make  them  unsightly. 
It  is  not  advisable  to  wash  a  cloth  cover,  unless  very 
dirty,  as  the  finish  is  thereby  removed,  thus  per- 
mitting the  book  to  become  soiled  again  almost 
with  first  handling.  In  case,  however,  a  publisher's 
cloth  binding  has  become  so  soiled  as  to  need  washing, 
it  can  be  very  well  cleaned  and  given  a  new  finish 
by  the  process  described  below.  If  the  directions 
are  .carefully  followed  books  treated  in  this  way  will 
look  almost  new  and  will  keep  clean  almost  as  well 
as  they  did  when  they  came  from  the  publishers' 
hands : 


76  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Hold  the  book  by  the  leaves  in  the  left  hand,  with 
the  covers  outside  of  fingers  and  thumb;  rub  the 
cover  gently  with  a  sponge  dipped  in  a  mixture  of 
vinegar  and  water,  half  of  each.  Continue  to  rub 
it  carefully  until  it  is  quite  clean;  but  do  not  press 
hard  enough  or  rub  persistently  enough  to  take  off 
any  of  the  color.  Rub  gently,  slowly  and  carefully, 
letting  the  vinegar  and  water  do  most  of  the  work. 
When  thoroughly  clean,  or  as  clean  as  the  character 
of  color  and  cloth  will  permit  the  book  in  hand  to  be 
made,  stand  it  on  end  to  dry.  The  drying  will  take 
at  least  a  half  hour;  a  good  plan,  consequently,  is 
to  clean  as  many  books  at  one  time  as  one  can  do 
in  about  forty-five  minutes.  The  first  one  cleaned 
will  then  be  ready  for  the  next  step  when  the  whole 
lot  has  been  finished. 

In  a  common  drinking  glass,  place  one  teaspoonful 
of  egg  albumen,  to  be  had  at  any  book  bindery,  and 
two  teaspoonfuls  of  vinegar,  add  half  a  glass  of  water 
and  let  this  stand  over  night.  The  next  day,  add 
two  teaspoonfuls  of  binders'  paste,  stir  thoroughly, 
and  it  is  ready  for  use.  With  a  sponge  give  the 
cleaned  books  one  coat  of  this  mixture  and  again 
stand  on  end  to  dry.  This  mixture  will  not  make 
the  covers  as  shiny  as  does  shellac  or  varnish,  but  will 
cover  the  surface  well  and  protect  it.  It  will  be 
sticky  when  first  put  on. 

Leather  decay.  Leather  bindings  which  show 
signs  of  decay  may  be  treated  to  an  application  of 
vaseline  or  olive  oil,  or  a  solution  of  paraffin  wax 
in  twice  its  weight  of  castor  oil,  slightly  warmed. 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  77 

Rub  in  well  with  fingers  or  cloth.  The  progress  of 
decay  can  in  some  cases  be  stopped  by  this  means. 

Labels.  Take  off  and  replace  with  fresh  ones  all 
torn  and  badly  soiled  back  labels.  To  do  this, 
apply  to  them  a  mixture  of  two  parts  water  and  one 
part  ammonia.  After  they  are  soaked  enough  to 
come  off  very  easily,  take  them  off  with  a  dull  knife. 
In  most  cases  let  the  water  remain  on  the  label  for 
several  minutes.  To  scratch  off  the  label  without 
soaking  it  first  will  often  injure  the  book.  Labels 
that  have  been  varnished  are  sometimes  very  difficult 
to  remove  and  great  care  should  be  exercised  with 
them. 

Replacing  labels.  Follow  method  used  in  putting 
them  on  when  book  is  new,  except  that  it  is  not 
necessary  to  moisten  with  ammonia  and  water  the 
place  on  which  the  label  is  to  go.  Use  Dennison's 
round  gummed  label,  of  a  size  small  enough  to  rest 
entirely  on  the  back  of  the  book.  Never  let  a  label 
extend  over  and  around  the  edge  of  the  back.  For 
quite  small  books  trim  the  label.  Moisten  the  gum 
slightly  and  press  and  work  it  down  carefully  until 
it  has  set  all  over.  This  is  very  essential.  Mark 
the  book  with  indelible  ink.  Cover  label  with  quite 
thin  white  shellac.  The  shellac  should  extend  a 
little  onto  the  book  beyond  the  label  all  around. 
Let  the  first  coat  dry  thoroughly  and  then  apply  a 
second. 

Labels  on  the  sides  of  books.  If  the  cover  is 
durabline  or  keratol,  first  put  a  coat  of  shellac  on  the 
place  where  the  label  is  to  be  placed.  Allow  this  to 


78  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

dry.  Paste  and  put  on  the  label,  rubbing  it  down 
thoroughly.  Allow  it  to  dry  and  give  it  a  coat  of 
shellac.  If  the  cover  is  cloth,  use  ammonia  and 
water  instead  of  shellac  before  putting  on  the  label. 

Loose  leaves.  If  the  loose  leaves  are  illustrations 
in  an  ordinary  novel,  take  them  out  and  send  them 
to  the  picture  department.  Replace  other  pictures 
with  a  guard  of  Japanese  mending  tissue.  This 
tissue  takes  up  less  space  than  bond  paper  and  must 
always  be  cut  with  the  grain  of  the  paper  or  it  cannot 
well  be  handled.  Rub  the  tissue  down,  first  laying 
over  it  a  piece  of  paper. 

Single  leaves  can  be  inserted  in  three  different  ways : 

1.  Fold  half-inch  strips  of  bond  paper  in  the  center 
lengthwise   along   the    grain.     With    a    small   brush 
apply   paste  to   the   outside   of  this  strip.     Attach 
half  of  it  to  the  edge  of  the  loose  leaf  and  the  other 
half  to  the  adjoining  leaf,  close  in  by  the  fold.    Cover 
the  strip  with  paste  evenly ,  but  sparingly  and  quickly, 
stretching,  it  as  little  as  possible.     If  it  does  stretch, 
and  it  tends  to  do  so  as  soon  as  moistened,  it  will 
when  dry  wrinkle  the   page  to  which  it  is  attached. 
Loose  leaves  should  be  attached  in  this  way  only  in 
books  which  are  in  good  condition. 

2.  Draw  a  soft  piece  of  twine  over  a  board  which 
has  received  a  thin  coat  of  paste;  then  pull  this  cord 
through  the  back  of  the  book  where  the  loose  leaf 
is  to  be  inserted.     This  leaves  in  the  book  just  enough 
paste   to   hold   in   the   loose   leaf.     Work   the   loose 
leaf  carefully  back  into  its  place,  close  the  back  and 
let  it  dry.     This  method  is  not  advised  for  general  use. 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  79 

3.  On  the  back  edge  of  the  loose  leaf  put  a  little 
paste.  Lay  the  leaf  in  place  and  close  the  book  for 
a  second,  then  open  and  push  leaf  in  place ,  with 
folder.  This  method  is  used  with  whipstitched 
books. 

The  first  two  methods  are  generally  used  with 
books  sewed  in  the  ordinary  way  on  tapes  or  cords. 

Sewing  in  loose  sections  and  loose  leaves. 

1.  Loose   back   books.      Thread  a    darning  needle 
three  inches  long  with  Harbour's  linen  thread,  No.  40, 
or  Hayes's  linen  thread,  No.  20.     Open  the  book  in' 
the  middle  of  the  loose  section.     Near  the  top  and 
bottom  of  the  fold  will  be  seen  holes  made  by  the 
binder.     Pass  the  needle  through   a  hole  near  the 
top,  and  out  between  the  book  and  its  loose  back. 
Do  not  pull  the  thread  clear  through.    Drop  the  needle 
and  thread  between  the  back  of  the  book  and  the  loose 
part  of  the  binding  to  the  bottom,  then  run  it  from 
the   outside   into   the   middle   of   the   loose   section 
through  the  hole  at  the  bottom  thereof,  and  tie  at 
the  point  of  beginning.     Insert  Japanese  guard  over 
thread.     This  holds  the  section  in  fairly  well.   Always 
guard  a  section  before  replacing  by  pasting  a  half- 
inch  strip  of  bond  paper,  folded  in  the  middle,  along 
the  folds. 

2.  Tight-back  books.     Cut   a   guard   of   jaconet  or 
bond  paper  three-fourths  of  an  inch  wide  and  as 
long  as  the  book.     Sew  the  signature  to  the  middle 
of  this  guard  and  then  paste  the  guard  in  the  book, 
attaching  half  of  it  to  each  of  the  leaves  adjoining 
the  loose  section. 


8o  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Broken  bindings.  Books  in  publisher's  cloth, 
which  are  breaking  out  of  their  bindings,  are  mended 
in  some  libraries  with  considerable  success  as 
follows : 

The  case  is  taken  off  with  care.  If  possible,  the 
lining  of  the  boards  is  removed  in  such  a.  way  as 
to.  permit  of  its  being  put  on  again.  The  super 
is  removed  from  the  margins  of  the  boards  and  from 
the  back.  Necessary  repairs  are  made  to  end  leaves 
and  stitches  are  taken  in  the  book  when  out  of  the 
case,  if  need  be.  The  back  of  the  book  and  the 
end  leaves  are  then  covered  with  a  thin  coat  of 
flexible  glue.  The  book  is  then  again  put  together. 
This  glues  the  back  of  the  case  directly  to  the  back 
of  the  book,  making  it  a  tight  back.  It  is  reported 
that  books  thus  repaired  wear  very  well.  Newark 
has  not  had  success  with  this  kind  of  work. 

Fly  leaves  and  end  papers.  To  add  a  new  fly  leaf. 
Cut  suitable  paper  just  the  length  of  the  leaves  of 
the  book  but  half  an  inch  wider,  fold  over  the  half 
inch  and  paste  it;  attach  this  half  inch  to  the  last 
fly  leaf  in  the  book,  close  to  the  joint. 

If  a  book  has  two  or  more  fly  leaves,  very  often 
you  can  save  much  time  and  still  have  your  work 
look  well  by  turning  the  first  leaf  back  and  pasting 
down  the  page  facing. 

If  leaves  stick  out  of  book  after  they  have  been 
tipped,  guarded  or  sewed  in,  trim  them  off  even 
with  the  others. 

If  the  end  sheet  or  lining  paper  of  the  cover  is 
soiled  or  injured,  cut  a  sheet  of  suitable  paper  to 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  8l 

fit  the  lining  paper  exactly  and  paste  the  new  sheet 
down  all  over,  fully  covering  it. 

After  the  new  lining  paper  is  put  in,  keep  the 
book  for  a  time  under  moderate  pressure  or  the 
cover  will  curl. 

Loose  joints.  If  books  are  loose  along  the  joint 
they  can  sometimes  be  repaired  by  pasting  along 
the  joint  inside  as  a  guard  a  strip  of  thin  muslin 
or  bond  paper,  an  inch  and  a  quarter  wide.  Fold 
the  strip  through  the  center,  paste  it  and  apply  it 
to  fly  leaf  and  book  cover.  A  better  material  than 
muslin  for  this  purpose  is  jaconet,  being  light  in 
weight  and  starched  a  little.  The  book  should  lie 
open  and  flat  after  mending  until  it  is  dry. 

This,  as  has  already  been  noted,  is  a  poor  method 
of  mending  a  broken  joint.  By  it  the  strain  is  passed 
from  the  cover  through  the  new  joint  to  the  fly 
leaf,  and  the  strength  of  the  new  joint  is  only  the 
strength  of  the  fly  leaf  itself,  which  is  generally  a 
poor  piece  of  paper.  A  better  way,  in  some  cases, 
is  to  take  the  book  entirely  out  of  its  cover,  pull 
the  super  from  the  back,  sew  on  new  end  sheets 
and  glue  a  new  piece  of  super  or  muslin  over  the 
back  and  extending  half  an  inch  onto  the  sides.  Let 
this  dry  thoroughly.  Then  cover  with  paste  the  back 
and  the  end  leaves,  the  latter  being  the  sheets  which 
are  now  to  become  lining  papers,  and  put  the  book 
again  into  its  case.  This  is  recasing,  in  effect,  in 
the  manner  in  which  the  book  was  first  put  together. 

Loosened  back.  A  book  which  is  in  fairly  good 
condition,  with  sewing  protected,  but  loose  in  the 


82  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

case,  can  sometimes  be  strengthened  by  applying 
paste  or  glue  down  the  inside  of  the  loose  back  of 
the  cover.  This  can  be  done  fairly  well  with  a  long 
handled  brush.  This  changes  the  binding  from  a 
loose  to  a  tight  back. 

To  reattach  loose  covers.  The  method  here 
described  should  be  applied  only  to  books  which 
are  little  used.  Cut  a  strip  of  muslin  the  length  of 
the  book,  and  about  an  inch  and  a  half  wider  than 
its  back.  Apply  hot  binder's  glue  to  it  and  put  it 
over  the  back  on  the  outside.  '  When  this  is  dry, 
cover  the  book  with  brown  wrapping  paper  as 
described  under  the  heading  "Covering  books,"  as 
a  book  thus  mended  is  quite  unsightly. 

When  a  book  is  out  of  the  cover,  but  has  its  sew- 
ing intact  and  the  super  or  paper  over  the  sewing 
firmly  in  place,  it  may  be  wise  to  give  the  back  a 
coat  of  hot  glue  and  put  book  again  into  its  cover, 
thus  making  it  a  tight  back. 

Covering  books.  Cut  brown  Rugby  wrapping  paper 
into  sheets  of  such  a  size  that  they  will  extend  from 
2  to  2^  inches  all  around  beyond  the  book  when 
laid  open  on  them.  This  size  will  be  found  to  be 
nearly  13x17  inches  for  the  ordinary  i2mo.  Lay 
the  closed  book  on  the  paper  with  back  in  the  center 
and  toward  you,  making  sure  that  the  proper  margin 
of  paper  is  left  all  around.  Fold  the  paper  over  the 
front  edge  of  top  cover;  reverse  book,  this  time  with 
front  edge  toward  you,  and  fold  and  stretch  paper 
tight  over  the  front  edge  of  the  cover.  Take  book 
by  the  back  in  the  left  hand.  With  scissors  cut  the 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  83 

paper  at  top  and  bottom,  with  slight  inward  slant 
from  its  outer  edges  down  to  the  four  ends  of  the 
joints.  Take  out  the  book,  and  turn  in  these  center 
flaps  with  a  double  fold,  putting  a  little  paste  on 
them  after  first  turn.  Replace  the  book  in  the  cover, 
flush  with  head  and  tail.  Tuck  in  folds  at  the  cor- 
ners of  the  front  and  back  lap,  making  not  too  great 
an  angle;  crease  well.  The  top  and  bottom  laps 
should  lie  over  the  front  and  back  laps.  Put  a  touch 
of  paste  on  laps  at  corners,  but  do  not  put  any  on 
the  book  itself. 

Residing  books.  Books  in  good-  condition  as  to 
their  bindings,  being  still  solid,  but  having  badly 
worn  or  badly  soiled  sides,  send  to  bindery  to  have 
the  covering  of  the  boards,  not  the  leather  of  the 
back,  taken  off  and  replaced  with  fresh  keratol. 
This  costs  about  10  cents  per  volume.  This  can 
also  be  done  in  the  repair  department,  and  book 
cloth  can  be  used  instead  of  keratol. 

Soiled  edges.  The  edges  of  soiled  books  can  be 
somewhat  improved  by  rubbing  them  with  sand  paper. 

To  cut  fore  edges  of  bound  book.  This  is  never 
done  to  a  book  of  value  or  to  one  that  can  be  rebound ; 
but  cheap,  shabby  books  with  sound  leather  backs 
which  hold  together  well  can  be.  freshened  by  cut- 
ting the  fore  edges  and,  if  necessary,  residing.  Some- 
times one  can  cut  straight  down  through  the  front 
edges  and  the  two  boards,  reside  and  insert  new  end 
pages.  This  seems  a  barbarous  process;  still,  it 
freshens  the  appearance  of  the  book  very  much  and 
often  prolongs  its  usefulness. 


84  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Maps.  When  small  folded  maps  are  badly  torn 
line  them  throughout  with  Japanese  tissue,  jaconet 
or  nainsook. 

To  freshen  black  leather.  Sponge  off  with  ordi- 
nary black  ink;  dry;  rub  over  with  paste;  dry;  apply 
a  coat  of  bookbinders'  varnish;  dry;  rub  with  vase- 
line. 

Broken  boards.  Books  which  have  one  or  both  of 
their  sides  broken,  but  are  otherwise  perfect,  can 
have  their  boards  replaced.  Do  not  do  this  to 
books  in  publisher's  binding,  as  such  books  will 
soon  have  to  be  rebound  in  any  case. 

On  a  book  which  is  hand  sewn,  with  leather  back, 
a  broken  board  can  be  replaced  thus:  Pull  off  the 
cloth  side,  lift  up  the  leather  carefully  where  it  laps 
over  the  side,  also  the  muslin  on  the  inside  and  pull 
out  the  broken  board.  Put  hot  glue  along  both 
edges  of  new  board  to  be  inserted,  and  put  in  place. 
Rub  down  well,  and  put  under  pressure,  then  reside 
and  insert  new  end  leaf. 

Ink  stains.  These  if  on  the  leaves  can  generally 
be  removed  with  ink  eradicator  or  javelle  water; 
but  if  they  are  on  the  edges  and  have  soaked  down 
into  the  book,  nothing  can  be  done  but  to  cut  the 
edges  and  have  the  book  rebound.  If  the  stains  on 
the  edges  have  not  soaked  in  very  deep,  sandpaper 
can  be  used  on  them  with  good  results. 

Ink  stains  can  be  removed  from  Keratol  by  apply- 
ing to  them  household  ammonia  of  full  strength 
with  a  small  bristle  brush,  working  it  over  a  little 
to  loosen  the  ink.  Allow  this  to  stand  a  minute 


REPAIRING    BOOKS,    NEWARK    METHODS  85 

or  two  and  then  rub  with  soft  cloth  and  wash  well 
with  water.  This  cannot  be  done  with  imperial 
cloth,  as  ink  sinks  into  its  fiber. 

General  stains.  Many  brown  stains  can  be  removed 
with  a  strong  solution  of  washing  soda,  or  better 
with  javelle  water.  Wash  with  clear  water  and  dry 
thoroughly  after  removing  the  stain  or  a  dark  line 
will  later  appear  at  the  edge  of  the  spot  which  was 
wet;  put  in  a  press  with  clean  papers  between  the 
leaves.  Alum  and  water  also  give  fairly  good  results. 
Water  and  a  little  ivory  soap  will  remove  some  finger 
marks.  All  of  these  methods  have  the  disadvantage 
of  removing  the  size  or  finish  in  the  paper  so  that  it 
soils  quickly  again. 

Grease  marks.  For  spots  made  with  grease  use 
benzine;  while  still  moist  apply  a  hot  iron,  with  a 
blotting  paper  on  each  side  of  leaf. 

Paste.  Paste  must  not  be  used  if  not  in  a  good 
condition.  The  thickness  at  which  it  should  be  used 
varies  with  different  kinds  of  work.  Thin  paste  is 
quickly  taken  up  and  under  its  application  paper 
quickly  expands.  In  most  cases  this  stretching  or 
expanding  of  the  paper  is  a  disadvantage.  If  it  is 
desirable  that  the  paper  be  so  applied  as  not  to 
draw  or  curl  that  to  which  it  is  applied,  it  should 
be  covered  quickly  with  thick  paste,  then  applied 
at  once  and  not  much  rubbed  after  it  is  in  place. 

The  dishes  in  which  paste  is  kept  should  be 
thoroughly  and  often  cleaned;  brushes  the  same. 
Bits  of  cloth  used  in  pasting  should  either  be  thrown 
away  or  washed  after  they  have  been  used  a  short  time. 


CHAPTER  XI 

Repairing  Books:  Materials  and  Tools 

In  spite  of  the  remarks  heretofore  made  about  the 
injury  often  done,  to  books  by  repairing  them,  even 
when  the  repairs  are  cleverly  made,  it  is  well  for  any 
library,  however  small,  to  have  a  mending  table  at 
which  such  work  on  books  as  seems  necessary  can 
be  done.  The  materials  for  this  work  can  in  part 
be  obtained  from  a  bindery.  There  one  can  get 
super,  pieces  of  book  cloth  of  several  colors,  and 
some  of  other  things  mentioned  below  and  in  the 
list  of  technical  terms.  One  needs  for  book  repairs 
some  or  all  of  the  following  things,  according  to  the 
amount  of  work  to  be  done. 

Brushes.  Buy  a  small  brush,  about  as  large  as 
a  lead  pencil,  and  another  half  an  inch  in  diameter. 
Their  prices  vary  with  their  quality,  from  6  cents 
up.  These  will  be  sufficient  for  most  purposes.  Get 
good  ones;  and  for  paste  and  glue  the  kind  set  in 
cement,  not  in  glue.  Artists'  bristle  brushes  are  good. 

Cloth.  A  yard  or  two  of  super.  This  is  stiffened 
a  little  and  pastes  and  handles  more  easily  than 
ordinary  muslin.  If  you  are  going  to  put  backs  on 
books  you  will  need  also  pieces  of  bookbinder's  cloth. 
These  can  be  bought  at  almost  any  bindery  in  yard 
lengths.  Get  also  pieces  of  cambric  and  fine  muslin 

86 


REPAIRING    BOOKS:    MATERIALS    AND    TOOLS          87 

called  nainsook,  or  jaconet,  for  guarding  signatures 
and  similar  work.  It  costs  15  cents  a  yard. 

Copying  press.  For  pressing  books.  One  10x12 
inches  will  cost  about  $3.75. 

Cutting  board.  The  best  cutting  board  is  one  of 
hard  wood.  A  common  bread-board  will  serve  for 
small  work  and  costs  only  a  few  cents. 

Folder.    Flat  piece  of  bone.     15  cents. 

Glue  pot.  Get  the  regular  double  pot  of  iron. 
A  No.  2  will  cost  about  75  cents. 

Ground  glue.     Best,  18  cents  a  pound. 

Gummed  paper.  Paper  and  cloth  ready  gummed 
and  other  useful  repair  material  can  be  bought  of 
Gaylord  Bros.,  Emerson  Building,  Syracuse,  N.  Y., 
and  also  of  Holden  Patent  Book  Cover  Co.,  Spring- 
field, Mass. 

Japanese  mending  paper.  Handmade  Japanese 
Window  or  Shoji  Paper  used  for  mending  and  guard- 
ing can  be  obtained  from  Japan  Paper  Co.,  34  Union 
Sq.,  N.  Y.  Price  $5.00  per  ream  of  500  sheets  16x22. 
This  is  the  best  of  all  mending  papers  for  repairing 
torn  leaves. 

Knife.  A  good  knife  is  what  is  called  a  shoe- 
maker's knife,  a  long  blade,  square  at  the  end.  15 
cents.  Keep  the  corner  square  by  occasionally 
knocking  a  piece  off  the  end.  For  a  sharpener  wrap 
a  piece  of  fine  emery  paper  about  a  square  stick  and 
tack  it  down. 

Mending  tissue.     See  Japanese  mending  paper. 

Needles.  Several  sizes,  esgpcially  the  regular  sew- 
ing needles  of  the  binder. 


88  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Paper.  Different  kinds  of  book  paper,  to  be 
obtained  from  any  printer,  will  be  needed  for  replac- 
ing end  sheets,  also  thin  bond  paper  for  guarding 
leaves.  Rope  manila  of  the  best  quality  will  also 
be  found  useful.  Get  also  some  of  the  rolls  of  adhesive 
paper  sold  by  The  Dennison  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, ii  Dey  St.,  New  York  (f  inches  wide,  per 
dozen  spools  40  cents),  for  mending  torn  pages.  It 
is  very  convenient. 

Paste.  Buy  this  at  a  bindery,  if  you  use  much. 
For  occasional  use  it  can  be  thus  made:  stir  flour 
in  cold  water  until  smooth,  add  hot  water,  let  it 
boil  for  a  few  minutes,  and  add  a  little  salt  and 
alum  as  preservatives.  Good  paste  can  be  bought 
in  jars.  Higgins's  is  the  best.  The  cost  is  25  cents 
per  8-ounce  jar.  Almost  any  stationer  carries  it, 
or  it  can  be  ordered  of  Charles  M.  Higgins,  168 
Eighth  St.,  Brooklyn.  A  convenient  thing  for  paste 
in  small  quantities  is  the  tube.  The  several  makes 
are  all  about  equally  good. 

Paste  made  of  starch  is  best  for  work  on  fine 
books,  as  it  is  more  transparent  and  shows  less 
than  other  paste. 

Ruler.  One  with  a  brass  edge  is  handy,  but  not 
essential. 

Scissors.  Slender,  6-inch  blades,  good  quality, 
75  cents. 

Sewing  bench.  This  can  be  made  as  follows: 
Take  a  board  24  in.  long  and  10  in.  wide.  On  the 
side  of  it  and  14  in.  apart  nail  two  uprights,  }  in. 
square  and  a  foot  long.  Across  the  top  of  these 


REPAIRING    BOOKS:    MATERIALS    AND    TOOLS         89 

nail  a  stick  £  in.  square.  Tacks  can  be  driven  into 
the  board  and  into  the  cross  stick  above  where 
needed,  and  cords  or  tapes  stretched  between  them. 
This  gives  you  all  the  essentials  of  a  sewing  bench. 
Thread.  Some  of  Hayes's  best  Irish  linen  thread, 
smaller  size,  say  No.  18.  Or  Harbour's  linen,  No.  30. 


CHAPTER  XII 

Covering  Books 

Few  libraries  now  cover  their  books.  The  reasons 
for  covering  them  usually  given  are,  that  the  paper 
covers  gather  dust  less  easily  than  do  the  publisher's 
cloth  bindings;  and  that  the  paper  covers  can  be 
renewed  when  soiled  and  books  can  thus  be  kept  at 
small  expense  fairly  clean  as  to  their  exteriors. 

The  objections  to  the  paper  cover  may  thus  be 
stated:  It  takes  away  the  individuality  of  the  book 
and  thus  detracts  from  its  interest;  the  cover  has  a 
tendency,  unless  very  carefully  put  on,  to  strain  the 
back  of  the  book;  borrowers  are  more  careless  in 
handling  a  covered  than  an  uncovered  book. 

The  only  use  the  Newark  Library  has  found  for 
book  covers  is  on  old  volumes  which  are  very  rarely 
used  and  yet  are  too  broken  or  too  much  worn  and 
disfigured  to  look  well  on  the  shelf.  Frequently 
old  leather  bindings  crack  along  the  joint  so  that  the 
sides  separate  from  the  back.  When  this  occurs 
a  piece  of  muslin  covered  with  hot  glue  applied 
to  the  back  of  the  book,  extending  onto  the  sides, 
will  hold  it  together  fairly  well,  and  then  a  paper 
cover  hides  the  defacement. 

The  process  of  putting  on  a  paper  cover  is  described 
in  the  chapter  on  Repairing. 

90 


COVERING    BOOKS  91 

The  Newark  Library  has  experimented  with  several 
materials  and  at  this  date  has  found  that  Rugby 
wrapping  paper  has  given  better  satisfaction  than 
any  other.  It  is  a  tough  brown  paper,  which  can 
be  obtained  from  Lindenmeyr  &  Sons,  New  York. 
Cost,  $3.30  per  ream;  size,  24x36,  60  Ibs. 

The  arguments  for  covering  books  used  in  schools 
are  somewhat  different  from  those  that  may  be  applied 
in  regard  to  the  same  practice  for  books  in  libraries. 
The  Holden  Patent  Book  Cover  Company,  of  Spring- 
field, Mass.,  makes  an  adjustable  cover  of  very  stout, 
water-proof  paper.  This  cover  and  others  akin  to 
it  are  used  to  a  great  extent  in  the  public  schools. 

The  same  Holden  Company  publishes  a  little 
pamphlet  called,  "  How  to  Care  for  Books  and  Keep 
Them  in  Perfect  Repair."  This  they  present  to 
teachers  who  make  use  of  their  appliances  for  repair- 
ing books.  These  appliances  include  thin  transpar- 
ent paper  glued  on  both  sides ;  the  same  glued  on  one 
side;  polished  cloth  in  several  colors  glued  on  one 
side;  paper  in  long  strips,  so  folded  and  glued  that 
they  can  be  conveniently  used  to  strengthen  and 
repair  bindings;  self-binders,  which  are  strips  of 
glued  cloth  with  little  tongues  cut  out  and  projecting 
from  them,  that  may  be  used  to  hold  cover  and  book 
together. 

It  appears  that  in  schools  which  purchase  mate- 
rials like  those  made  by  the  Holden  Company,  and 
instruct  their  teachers  to  use  them  on  books  as  soon 
as  any  of  them  show  the  need  of  repairs,  the  annual 
cost  of  text-books  is  reduced.  Probably  the  cost 


92  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

would  be  still  more  reduced  were  the  books  mended 
very  little  by  a  skilled  person,  and  were  they  properly 
rebound  as  soon  as  they  need  to  be. 

Gaylord  Brothers,  of  Syracuse,  N.  Y.,  make  and 
sell  repair  material  similar  to  that  of  the  Holden 
Company. 

Further  light  is  thrown  on  this  subject  by  certain 
answers  to  questions  recently  received  from  forty 
superintendents  in  the  United  States.  These  an- 
swers show  that  in  two  only  of  forty  cities  where  text- 
books are  furnished  is  any  systematic  attention  given 
to  the  care  of  text-books.  In  two  cities  there  is  an 
official  curator  of  books  who  looks  after  the  covering, 
repairing,  and  rebinding  of  them. 

The  custom  in  public  schools  seems  to  be  to  pur- 
chase text-books,  to  keep  them  in  use  with  a  minimum 
of  repairs  until  they  are  too  tattered  and  soiled  to 
be  thought  respectable  even  by  the  most  careless 
teacher,  and  then  throw  them  away.  This  practice 
is  probably  wasteful  and  extravagant;  at  least  it 
seems  to  be  so  in  the  light  of  the  experience  in  libra- 
ries in  the  same  matter, 


CHAPTER  XIII 

Leather:  General  Notes 

The  names  given-  to  different  kinds  of  leather 
come  sometimes  from  the  character  of  its  surface, 
that  is,  from  the  "grain,"  or  roughness  or  corru- 
gation it  has;  sometimes  from  the  animal  it  once 
covered;  sometimes  from  the  method  of  tanning; 
sometimes  from  the  fact  that  it  is  part  of  a  skin  which 
has  been  split;  sometimes  from  the  place  or  country 
where  it  is  made  or  where  the  animal  it  once  covered 
lived,  and  sometimes  from  a  combination  of  two  or 
more  of  these. 

The  subject  of  the  leathers  used  in  bookbinding 
is  a  very  difficult  one.  Tanners,  dealers  and  binders, 
dictionaries,  encyclopaedias  and  books  on  tanning 
disagree  with  one  another  as  to  the  proper  terms  to 
use  in  speaking  of  different  kinds  of  leather.  Imita- 
tions are  many,  and  very  successful.  In  the  list 
below  I  have  tried  to  follow  the  usage  of  binders; 
but  I  am  sure  no  expert  would  accept  it  throughout 
as  correct. 

With  this  variety  in  definition  goes  a  correspond- 
ing variety  in  character  in  leather  of  the  same  name. 
Different  skins  tanned  in  the  same  way,  apparently, 
and  called  by  the  same  name  by  dealers  and  binders, 
will  wear,  some  well,  some  not  so  well.  The  only 

93 


94  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

quite  definite  assertion  which  can  be  made  is,  that 
of  modern  leathers,  few  save  the  best  morocco  and 
pigskin  will  keep  their  strength  for  any  length  of 
time  in  an  American  library,  and  morocco  and  pig- 
skin usually  for  not  much  over  20  years. 

As  the  remarks  which  follow  indicate,  English 
leather  makers  have  recently  procured  leathers  guar- 
anteed to  be  dressed  on  the  lines  recommended  by 
the  Society  of  Arts  Report.  See  also  the  revised 
report,  and  the  little  volume,  with  samples,  called 
Leather  for  Libraries  by  Hulme,  Parker  and  others. 

Leathers  made  from  the  skins  of  animals  of  the  same 
kind,  the  goat  for  example,  though  made  by  the  same 
process,  vary  somewhat  with  the  animals'  sex,  age 
when  killed,  the  food  on  which  they  lived,  the 
climate  in  which  they  matured,  and  their  manner 
of  life,  and,  if  females,  with  the  fact  that  they  have 
or  have  not  had  young.  Also,  the  leather  made  from 
the  skin  of  one  part  of  the  body  differs  materially 
from  that  made  from  the  skin  of  another  part. 

Moreover,  some  dyes  seem  to  hasten  decay,  some 
to  retard  it.  Red  seems  least  hurtful,  black  the 
most  so;  though  this  difference  is  probably  due  more 
to  chemicals  used  in  the  preparation  of  the  skin  for 
the  dye  than  to  the  dye  itself.  Brown  generally 
stands  well;  most  other  colors,  except  red  as  stated, 
do  not. 

With  all  these,  and  other,  factors  to  be  taken  into 
consideration  it  is  evident  that  full  knowledge  of 
leather  is  not  given  to  anyone.  In  a  general  way 
it  may  be  said  that  good  leather  cannot  be  told  by 


LEATHER:  GENERAL  NOTES  95 

name,  or  looks,  or  feel;  but  only  by  trial.  Dealers, 
even,  cannot  tell  the  good  from  the  best. 

The  sum  of  all  advice  is,  having  found,  by  your 
own  or  others'  tests,  that  a  certain  leather  is  good, 
use  it  as  long  as  you  can  get  it.  The  British  museum 
sets  a  good  example  in  this.  It  has  in  recent  years 
bound  many  thousands  of  volumes  in  morocco  made 
by  Meredith -Jones  &  Sons,  Wrexham,  Wales,  which 
experience  thus  far  shows  to  be  very  good.  We 
have  tried  it  and  in  the  brief  trial  we  have  given 
it,  found  it  excellent. 

Dr.  J.  Gordon  Parker,  Herold's  Institute,  Drum- 
mond  Road,  Bermondsey,  England,  has  made  an 
arrangement  with  the  council  of  the  Library  Asso- 
ciation of  England  by  which  he  has  become  their 
official  examiner  of  leather  and  he  will  test  samples 
for  acids,  nature  of  tannage,  etc.,  at  reasonable  rates. 

John  Muir  &  Son,  tanners  and  curriers,  Beith, 
Scotland,  offices:  3  Arundel  St.,  Strand,  London, 
W.  C.,  England,  prepare  pigskin  for  bookbinding; 
so  do  Edw.  &  Jas.  Richardson,  Elswick  Leather 
Works,  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  England. 

J.  Meredith-Jones  &  Sons,  Ltd.,  Cambrian  Leather 
Works,  Wrexham,  Wales,  make  bookbinders'  leathers 
guaranteed  to  be  dressed  on  the  lines  recommended 
by  the  Society  of  Arts  Report,  and  free  from  mineral 
acids.  Specialty:  Welsh  sheep. 

Much  has  been  written  on  the  wearing  and  last- 
ing qualities  of  leather.  The  best  discussion  of  the 
subject  is  the  Report  of  the  committee  on  leather 
for  bookbinding,  made  to  the  Society  of  Arts,  Eng- 


96  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

land,  and  published  in  its  Journal,  July  5,  1901.  I 
allude  to  this  report  frequently,  and  for  convenience 
speak  of  it  as  "Report  '01."  The  committee  who 
made  this  report  found  that  the  leather  made  today 
does  not  last  as  long  as  that  made  75  years  ago. 
They  found  that  the  heat  and  fumes  of  gas  help 
to  hasten  the  decay  of  the  leather  on  books.  These 
factors  are  more  effective  in  American  superheated 
libraries  than  in  English  ones.  If  books  bound  in 
leather  are  much  handled  they  last  longer  than  if 
they  stand  undisturbed  on  the  shelves,  because  the 
oil  from  the  hand  helps  to  keep  leather  soft,  pliable, 
and  alive.  The  committee  concluded  that  no  leather, 
with  the  sole  exception  of  Niger  goat,  made  by  the 
natives  on  the  river  Niger  in  Africa,  and  imported 
just  as  it  leaves  their  hands,  can  be  fully  recom- 
mended as  free  from  elements  which  lead  to  its  early 
decay.  Since  this  report  was  published  imitations 
of  this  leather  have  been  put  on  the  market,  and  it 
can  no  longer  be  relied  upon.  We  have  found  it 
beautiful  in  color  and  texture,  easy  to  work  and 
wearing  admirably  on  large  and  much-used  books. 
But  it  does  not  keep  clean  as  well  as  a  good  morocco 
of  coarse  grain.  It  is  very  expensive,  and  first-class 
morocco  is  probably  better  where  strong,  enduring 
leather  is  advisable  which  is  only  on  books  which 
are  to  be  much  used. 

The  most  important  points  made  in  the  report  of 
the  Society  of  Arts  committee  on  leather  for  book- 
binding, referred  to  above,  are  the  following: 

Books  bound  during  the  last  80  or  100  years  show 


LEATHER:  GENERAL  NOTES  97 

far  greater  evidence  of  deterioration  than  those  of 
an  earlier  date.  Many  recent  bindings  show  evidence 
of  decay  after  so  short  a  period  as  ten  or  even  five, 
years.  Modern  leather  is  certainly  far  less  durable 
than  old  leather. 

The  most  prevalent  decay  is  a  red  decay,  and 
this  may  be  differentiated  into  old  and  new,  the 
old  red  decay  being  noticeable  up  to  about  1830, 
and  the  new  decay  since  that  date. 

Another  form  of  deterioration,  more  noticeable  in 
the  newer  books,  renders  the  grain  of.  the  leather 
liable  to  peel  off  when  exposed  to  the  slightest  fric- 
tion. This  is  the  most  common  form  of  decay  noted 
in  the  most  recent  leathers. 

Decay  is  caused  by  both  mechanical  and  chemical 
influences.  Of  the  latter  some  are  due  to  mistakes 
of  the  leather  manufacturer  and  the  bookbinder, 
others  to  the  want  of  ventilation,  and  improper 
heating  and  lighting  of  libraries.  In  some  cases 
inferior  leathers  are  finished  (by  methods  in  them- 
selves injurious)  to  imitate  a  better  class  of  leathers, 
and  of  course  where  these  are  used  durability  cannot 
be  expected.  But  in  the  main  the  injury  for  which 
the  manufacturer  and  bookbinder  are  responsible 
must  be  attributed  rather  to  ignorance  of  the  effect 
of  the  means  employed  to  give  the  leather  the  out- 
ward qualities  required  for  binding,  than  to  the 
intentional  production  of  an  inferior  article. 

Embossing  leather  under  heavy  pressure  to  imitate 
a  grain  has  a  very  injurious  effect. 

The  shaving  of  thick   skins   greatly  reduces   the 


98  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

strength  of  the  leather  by  cutting  away  the  tough 
fibers  of  the  inner  part  of  the  skin. 

The  use  of  mineral  acids  in  brightening  the  color 
of  leather,  and  in  the  process  of  dyeing,  has  a  serious 
effect  in  lessening  its  resistance  to  decay 

Quite  modern  leather  dyed  black  seems,  in  nearly 
all  cases,  to  have  perished,  although  old  black  moroc- 
co (sixteenth,  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries) 
in  good  condition  is  not  uncommon. 

In  a  very  large  proportion  of  cases  the  decay  of 
modern  sumac-tanned  leather  has  been  due  to  the 
sulphuric  acid  used  in  the  dye  bath,  and  retained  in 
the  skin. 

Tobacco  smoke  has  a  darkening  and  deleterious 
effect  on  leather  bindings. 

Light,  and  especially  direct  sunlight  and  hot  air, 
possess  deleterious  influences  which  had  scarcely 
been  suspected. 

Gas  fumes  are  the  most  injurious  of  all  the  influ- 
ences to  which  books  are  subjected,  no  doubt  because 
of  sulphuric  and  sulphurous  acid  they  contain.  They 
are  especially  injurious  to  books  on  the  upper  shelves 
of  a  high  room. 

The  importance  of  moderate  temperature  and 
thorough  ventilation  of  libraries  cannot  be  too  much 
insisted  on.  With  proper  conditions  of  ventilation, 
temperature,  and  dryness,  books  may  be  preserved 
without  deterioration,  for  very  long  periods,  on  open 
shelves. 

On  the  other  hand,  as  a  general  rule,  tightly  fitting 
glass  cases  conduce  to  their  preservation. 


LEATHER:  GENERAL  NOTES  99 

Leather  bindings  that  have  been  coated  with  glair 
or  varnish  seem  to  keep  better  than  those  without. 

The  bookbinder  shares,  in  no  small  measure,  with 
the  leather  manufacturer  and  librarian,  the  blame 
for  the  premature  decay  of  leather  bindings. 

Books  are  sewn  on  too  few  and  too  thin  cords, 
and  are  not  firmly  laced  into  the  boards.  This 
renders  the  attachment  of  the  boards  to  the  book 
almost  entirely  dependent  on  the  strength  of  the 
leather. 

The  use  of  hollow  backs  usually  throws  too  much 
strain  on  the  joints  in  opening  and  shutting  the  book. 

If  the  headbands  are  not  strong  the  leather  of  the 
back  is  apt  to  become  torn. 

The  leather  is  often  made  very  wet  and  stretched 
a  great  deal  in  covering,  with  the  result  that,  on 
drying,  it  is  further  strained,  almost  to  breaking 
point,  by  contraction,  leaving  a  very  small  margin 
of  strength  to  meet  the  accidents  of  use. 

The  use  of  oxalic  acid  for  washing  backs  of  books, 
or  of  leather  for  bookbinding,  is  fatal  to  durability. 
Vinegar,  even  in  its  pure  state,  is  injurious 

Paste  should  be  used  in  a  fresh  condition,  other- 
wise it  is  liable  to  undergo  an  acid  fermentation,  and 
to  favor  the  growth  of  injurious  moulds  and  bacteria. 

In  all  contracts  and  specifications  for  bookbinding, 
the  use  of  East  India-tanned  goat  and  sheep,  whether 
retanned  or  not,  should  be  absolutely  forbidden. 

It  appears  to  be  the  general  opinion  that  leather, 
and  especially  Russia  leather,  lasts  better  on  books 
that  are  in  constant  use.  This  is  attributed  to  the 


100  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

slight  amount  of  grease  absorbed  by  the  leather 
from  the  hand,  and  it  is  suggested  that  possibly  a 
suitable  dressing  may  be  discovered  which  would 
have  a  similar  effect  to  that  produced  by  this  grease. 

While  the  leather  now  used  for  binding  books  is 
less  durable  than  that  employed  50  years  and  more 
ago,  there  ought  to  be  no  difficulty  in  providing 
leather  at  the  present  time  as  good  as  any  previously 
made. 

It  is  possible  to  test  any  leather  in  such  a  way  as 
to  guarantee  its  suitability  for  bookbinding. 

A  reissue  of  the  report  summarized  above  was 
published,  in  cloth,  in  1905.  It  is  entered  in  the  list 
of  books  at  the  end  of  this  volume.  In  this  reissue 
the  arrangement  of  the  original  report  is  somewhat 
modified;  a  paper  on  leather  dyes  and  dyeing  has 
been  added ;  the  report  of  the  scientific  sub-committee 
has  been  practically  rewritten;  many  illustrations 
have  been  added,  some  of  them  colored;  12  samples 
of  leather  prepared  in  accordance  with  the  commit- 
tee's conclusions  are  inserted;  and  the  volume  is 
handsomely  printed,  and  bound  in  cloth.  The 
reissue,  however,  does  not  make  necessary  any  change 
in  the  above  summary. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

Paper  and  Paper  Making 

Much  of  the  paper  used  in  books  today  is  made 
of  wood.  Wood  is  converted  into  paper-making 
material  in  three  ways.  In  one,  it  is  cut  into  con- 
venient lengths,  stripped  of  its  bark  and  finely  ground 
on  grindstones,  and  bleached.  The  product  is  called 
ground  wood  pulp.  The  paper  made  from  this  pulp 
is  hastily  and  cheaply  put  together,  has  little  strength, 
and  soon  turns  yellow  and  grows  brittle.  There  is 
often  added  to  ground  wood  before  making  it  into 
paper,  more  or  less  sulphite  or  soda  pulp,  usually 
the  latter,  the  product  of  another  process  of  turning 
wood  into  paper-making  material. 

In  the  sulphite  and  soda  processes  the  wood  is 
freed  of  bark,  cut  into  small  pieces,  and  reduced  to 
a  pulp  by  being  heated  with  water  and  chemicals 
under  pressure  in  an  air-tight  steel  tank  or  boiler. 
Sulphite  and  soda  pulp,  which  get  their  names  from 
chemicals  used  in  reducing  the  wood  to  pulp,  have 
longer  and  better  fiber  than  ground  wood  pulp.  In 
both  processes  certain  means  are  used  to  whiten  the 
fiber  and  free  it  from  sap,  gum,  and  other  things 
which  would  prevent  it  from  acting  properly  in  the 
paper-making  machine,  or  would  tend  to  make  it 
grow  yellow  or  spotted.  Spruce  or  basswood  are 


IO2  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

the  woods  chiefly  used,  and  they  seem  to  submit 
themselves  to  treatment  better  and  to  give  a  longer 
fiber  than  other  kinds.  The  pulp  made  from  rags  is 
often  mixed  with  sulphite  and  soda  pulp.  The  rag- 
pulp  fiber  improves  the  quality  of  the  resulting  paper 
for  reasons  not  easily  set  forth.  Paper  made  entirely 
of  wood  may  be  of  good  quality,  especially  sulphite 
papers.  The  popular  outcry  against  wood  paper  is 
based  on  the  fact  that  much  of  it  is  made  very  cheaply 
and  poorly. 

The  rags  used  in  paper  making  are  nearly  all- 
cotton.  They  are  not  all  of  them  rags  in  the  ordinary 
sense  of  the  term.  Many  of  them  are  cuttings  from 
clothing  factories  and  have  never  been  used.  New 
rags  do  not  act  the  same  way  under  the  treatment 
which  changes  them  to  paper  pulp  as  do  the  old 
ones.  The  paper  made  entirely  from  new  cloth 
differs  somewhat  from  that  made  from  old  rags.  The 
best  book  papers,  however,  contain  only  stock  pre- 
pared from  old  rags. 

The  process  of  changing  rags  into  paper  is  very 
similar  to  that  of  changing  wood  into  paper.  The 
rags  are  cleaned,  freed  from  foreign  substances,  cut 
into  small  pieces,  thoroughly  washed,  bleached,  and 
then  beaten  to  a  pulp,  under  water,  by  machines  which 
convert  them  into  a  soft,  homogeneous,  creamy  mass, 
called  technically  stuff,  and  yet  preserve  the  greatest 
possible  length  of  fiber.  This  process  of  beating  rags 
into  good  paper-making  material  requires  care  and 
considerable  time.  If  the  process  is  hastened  unduly 
the  resulting  material  is  not  so  good. 


PAPER  AND  PAPER  MAKING  103 

Paper  is  made  from  other  materials  besides  wood 
and  cotton;  but  nearly  all  of  that  used  in  books  in 
this  country  is  made  of  one  or  other  of  these  two 
materials,  or  of  a  combination  of  the  two. 

The  stuff  produced  as  described,  almost  milk-like 
in  its  consistency,  is  pumped  from  a  tank,  in  which 
it  is  kept  constantly. stirred  to  prevent  the  fiber  from 
settling,  onto  the  paper-making  machine.  This 
machine  is  an  evolution  from  a  simple  hand  appli- 
ance which  was  used  by  paper  makers  for  several 
centuries.  It  was  a  shallow  tray  .with  a  bottom 
made  of  a  network  of  wires.  This  was  held  in  the 
hands,  dipped  into  a  vat  containing  the  paper-making 
material,  and  as  much  of  the  latter  taken  up  on  the 
wires  as  in  the  judgment  of  the  maker  was  sufficient 
for  a  sheet  of  paper.  It  was  then  shaken  gently, 
and  deftly  handled,  until  the  water,  running  through 
the  wires,  left  on  the  latter,  and  spread  evenly  over 
them,  a  layer  of  fibers.  These  dried  and  matted 
together  in  a  few  seconds  sufficiently  to  enable  the 
maker  to  turn  them  out  on  a  blanket;  on  this  another 
blanket  was  spread,  and  on  this  was  laid  another 
layer  of  fibers.  The  skilful  maker  of  paper  by  hand 
(in  a  few  places  in  this  country  the  craft  is  still 
practiced)  can  secure  considerable  evenness  in  the 
layers  of  fiber  or  pulp  on  the  wire  of  his  frame;  but 
the  layer  is  never  of  quite  the  same  thickness  through- 
out. Handmade  paper  can  sometimes  be  distin- 
guished by  these  variations  in  its  thickness.  Machine- 
made  paper  is  of  nearly  uniform  thickness.  In  the 
process  of  taking  up  from  the  vat  by  hand  a  thin 


104  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

layer  of  stuff,  the  maker  wove  together  the  fibers 
in  every  direction  by  skilful  and  delicate  movements 
of  the  frame.  A  paper-making  machine  cannot  so 
thoroughly  interweave  the  fibers.  Paper  made  by 
hand,  therefore,  has  a  quality  which  cannot  be 
secured  on  a  machine.  This  peculiar  texture  of 
handmade  paper  of  the  first  class  delights  the  con- 
noisseur, and  furnishes  a  printing  surface  superior, 
in  some  respects,  to  any  machine-made  paper. 

The  paper-making  machine  consists  primarily  of 
an  endless  roll  of  wire  screen,  similar  to  that  forming 
the  bottom  of  the  shallow  tray  used  in  making  paper 
by  hand.  This  wire  screen,  stretched  around  rollers, 
travels  almost  horizontally  away  from  a  broad  shelf 
from  which  it  receives  a  stream  of  stuff  pumped  onto 
the  latter  from  the  tank  before  mentioned.  As  the 
pulp  pours  out  onto  this  wire  it  settles  over  the 
screen,  and  is  woven  together  by  the  latter 's  oscil- 
lating and  forward  movement,  and  by  the  time  it 
reaches  the  end  of  the  screen  is  sufficiently  matted 
and  dry  to  hold  its  shape,  the  water  being  removed 
by  suction.  It  is  then  picked  up  by  a  roller,  and 
goes  through  a  succession  of  rolls,  varying  in  size, 
number,  character,  heat  and  pressure,  according  to 
the  quality  of  the  paper  being  made  and  the  surface 
desired  thereon.  In  some  cases,  toward  the  close 
of  the  process,  it  is  passed  through  a  tank  containing 
a  thin  mixture  of  glue  and  water,  called  size,  and  then 
is  again  dried.  Coming  out  as  paper  at  the  end  it  is 
cut  into  lengths  and  piled,  or  gathered  on  a  roll. 

The  wire  diaphragm  onto  which  the  paper  pulp 


PAPER  AND  PAPER  MAKING  105 

first  pours,  and  during  the  passage  over  which  it  is 
worked  into  a  mat,  the  water  meanwhile  being 
extracted  from  it,  is  of  varying  styles.  If  perfectly 
plain  the  resulting  paper  is  almost  without  marks, 
and  is  said  to  be  wove.  If  made  of  wires  of  different 
sizes  properly  arranged  the  paper,  as  it  lies  on  it, 
receives  deeper  impressions  from  the  larger  wires 
than  from  the  smaller  and  the  former  appear  as 
light  lines  running  through  it  when  finished.  Paper 
thus  marked  is  called  laid,  to  distinguish  it  from  the 
wove.  As  the  paper  comes  from  the  wires  it  passes 
under  the  dandy  roll.  This  roll  sometimes  has 
figures  or  letters  raised  on  its  surface.  These  impress 
themselves  on  the  soft  paper  and  produce  a  greater 
transparency  where  they  touch,  sometimes  reducing 
the  thickness,  and  give  the  finished  paper  what  is 
called  a  watermark.  It  is  so  called  not  because  it  is 
made  of  water  or  by  water,  but  because  it  looks  as 
though  it  were  drawn  on  the  paper  with  a  point 
dipped  in  water. 

Endless  varieties  of  paper  can  be  made  from  the 
same  materials.  It  may  contain  more  or  less  rag; 
may  be  beaten  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  and  with 
more  or  less  care;  may  be  spread  thicker  or  thinner; 
may  be  rolled  on  hot  rolls,  or  polished,  more  or  less; 
may  receive  more  or  less  sizing;  may  be  dyed  in  a 
vat  before  it  starts  for  the  machine,  or  dipped  in  dye 
after  it  is  made,  or  color  may  be  applied  to  one  sur- 
face by  machine.  The  fiber  may  be  carelessly  pro- 
duced, and  the  chemicals  used  in  bleaching  and 
cleaning  it  may  be  only  partially  neutralized,  with 


IO6  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

the  result  that  the  paper  will  soon  act  as  if  being 
eaten  with  acid,  and  will  rapidly  turn  yellow  under 
a  bright  light. 

The  ordinary  observer  can  distinguish  between 
very  poor  and  fairly  good  paper  in  books.  He  can- 
not distinguish  between  paper  of  fairly  good  quality 
and  the  best. 

The  paper  used  in  newspapers  is  nearly  all  made 
entirely  of  ground  wood.  Most  of  it  is  made  as 
cheaply  as  possible,  and  soon  grows  brittle  and  dark 
in  color.  This  is  of  little  consequence  in  most  cases. 
For  the  ordinary  newspaper  the  paper  has  served  its 
purpose  if  it  looks  well  for  twenty-four  hours  after  it 
is  printed  and  exposed  to  the  light. 

Books  are  generally  printed  on  paper  which  has 
not  been  very  highly  polished.  Ink  is  taken  from 
the  type  more  readily  by  paper  of  this  kind,  espe- 
cially if  the  latter  be  rather  soft  in  texture,  so  that 
the  press  drives  into  it  the  face  of  the  type  bearing 
the  ink.  Modern  processes  of  reproducing  pictures 
give  plates  for  printing,  many  of  which  are  made  up 
of  very  fine  lines  placed  very  closely  together  and 
having  very  shallow  depressions  between  them.  To 
print  from  these  with  good  results  the  paper  used 
must  have  a  very  smooth,  highly  polished  surface. 
The  press  drives  soft  paper  down  into  the  narrow 
places  between  the  fine  lines  and  blurs  the  impression 
of  the  cut.  Newspapers  which  use  process-cuts  of 
the  kind  mentioned  are  obliged  to  use  paper  with  a 
smooth  surface  to  get  good  results.  This  smooth 
surface  is  generally  produced,  as  already  noted, 


PAPER  AND  PAPER  MAKING          IO7 

by  passing  the  paper  between  hot  metal  rollers,  a 
process  called  calendering.  In  a  more  expensive 
process,  called  plating,  the  paper,  cut  into  sheets, 
is  laid  between  sheets  of  zinc  until  a  pile  of  several 
inches  in  thickness  is  formed,  and  this  pile  is  passed 
several  times  under  rollers  exerting  a  heavy  pressure. 
This  smooths,  polishes  and  hardens  the  paper. 
Much  of  the  paper  used  for  illustrations  in  books 
has  a  surface  made  by  applying  a  coating  of  clay 
or  other  material  to  it  and  then  polishing  it.  Quite 
good  results  can  be  obtained  with"  fine  line  cuts  on 
calendered  or  plated  paper  without  the  addition  of 
a  coating  of  clay.  The  illustrations  on  coated  paper 
which  are  found  in  books  are  very  commonly  printed 
separately  from  the  book  itself,  which  is  on  ordinary 
uncoated  paper,  and  inserted  separately.  Generally 
these  inserts  are  not  carefully  fastened  in  and  cause 
much  annoyance  by  falling  out  after  the  book  has 
been  subjected  to  a  little  use. 

Recently  paper  makers  have  succeeded  in  produc- 
ing a  paper  which  has  a  smooth  surface  without  the 
high  polish  usually  found  on  that  which  is  coated, 
or  highly  calendered.  The  polished  surface  of  these 
papers,  especially  of  the  coated,  is  very  objectionable 
to  readers,  light  being  reflected  from  it  in  an  unpleas- 
ant way. 

It  will  be  seen  from  what  has  been  said  that  it  is 
difficult  so  to  describe  what  we  may  call  good  book 
paper  that  it  can  be  readily  distinguished.  Con- 
stant study  and  careful  comparisons  of  the  papers 
one  meets  in  books  will  enable  one  to  judge  of  them 


108  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

with  some  success.  One  who  has  much  to  do  with 
books  should  take  note  of  the  paper  of  which  they 
are  made,  and  learn  to  distinguish  between  poor 
and  good,  and  the  good  and  the  best,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible. This  is  especially  desirable  for  one  whose 
work  with  books  includes  their  rebinding  and  repair- 
ing. Coated  paper  breaks  easily,  the  stiffening 
added  to  it  by  the  coat  of  clay  giving  it  a  tendency 
to  fall  apart  as  soon  as  it  has  been  folded  in  the  same 
place  a  few  times.  Soft  and  fragile  paper,  such  as 
is  found  in  many  books,  will  stand  very  little  wear 
at  the  joint  in  the  back.  Paper  not  carefully  bleached 
and  freed  from  the  chemicals  used  in  bleaching, 
rapidly  discolors  at  the  edges  where  exposed  to  light. 
Such  facts  as  these,  and  many  others,  will  be  found 
useful  when  one  comes  to  have  books  rebound,  or 
attempts  to  repair  them. 

That  side  of  the  paper  which  touched  the  wires 
on  which  it  is  made  is  different  from  the  other.  This 
difference  is  usually  visible  to  the  trained  eye.  It 
is  often  taken  into  consideration  in  fine  printing. 

As  the  pulp  flows  out  upon  the  wires  it  tends  to 
mat  together  more  thoroughly  along  the  line  of  flow 
than  across  it.  This  gives  paper  a  grain,  along  which 
it  tears  and  folds  more  readily  than  across  it.  This 
fact  also  is  often  taken  advantage  of  in  good  printing. 

All  paper  expands  or  stretches  when  wet.  This 
is  to  be  kept  in  mind  in  mending  books.  An  added 
strip,  pasted  on,  usually  draws  and  wrinkles,  when  it 
dries,  the  paper  to  which  it  is  applied.  Hence  the 
rule,  in  mending,  to  use  thick  paste  and  apply  the 


PAPER  AND  PAPER  MAKING  IOQ 

pasted  sheet  or  strip  to  its  place  as  quickly  after 
pasting  as  possible. 

Mr.  Chivers  has  recently  made,  1909,  with  the 
help  of  chemists  and  other  experts,  a  very  careful 
examination  of  the  composition,  structure,  tensile 
and  folding  strength  and  other  qualities  of  the  paper 
now  used  in  several  thousand  popular  books.  The 
results  of  this  examination,  when  applied  to  the 
subjects  of  book-selection  and  book-buying,  will  be 
of  great  value  to  libraries.  The  quality  of  the  paper 
used  in  the  books  on  which  libraries  spend  a  large 
per  cent  of  their  book  fund — novels — is  the  question 
that  should  be  first  considered  in  selecting  editions. 
Libraries  may  hope  soon  to  be  able  to  select  editions 
much  more  wisely  than  heretofore.  The  investiga- 
tions by  Mr.  Chivers,  and  those  carried  on  by  U.  S. 
Government  experts  in  Washington,  will  not  only 
enable  libraries  to  discover  the  best  editions  for 
purchase,  but  will  also  enable  them  to  secure  bind- 
ings so  carefully  adapted  to  the  quality  of  the  paper 
in  each  book  as  to  give  that  book  the  longest  possible 
life  of  usefulness. 


CHAPTER  XV 

Binding  Records 

By  binding  records  are  meant  the  reports  of  books 
sent  to  the  bindery,  their  return,  styles,  cost,  etc. 
There  are  many  ways  of  keeping  these.  For  the 
small  library  great  simplicity  is  desirable  and  pos- 
sible. The  large  library  usually  works  out  a  method 
adapted  to  its'  own  conditions. 

In  sending  books  to  a  binder  it  is  usually  not 
necessary  to  keep  any  record  other  than  the  book 
card,  on  which  may  be  written  or  stamped  the  word 
Binder  and  the  date  sent.  To  this  may  be  added  a 
few  words  or  a  number  indicating  material  and  style. 
The  binder  himself  is  usually  content  with  general 
instructions  for  each  separate  lot,  such  as,  "These 
25  vols.  bind  in  half  brown  cowskin  withkeratol  sides; 
special  sewing."  Some  libraries  attach  a  note  to  the 
title-page  of  each  book  saying  how  it  is  to  be  bound 
and  giving  the  lettering  for  the  back.  This  is  not  often 
necessary.  It  is  usual  to  note  the  latter  point  on  the 
title  page  by  underscoring  the  first  letter  of  each  word 
which  is  to  appear  on  the  back.  In  doing  this,  reduce 
the  lettering  as  far  as  possible  by  omitting  unnecessary 
words.  In  most  libraries,  for  example,  the  new  title 
for  "The  Adventures  of  Huckleberry  Finn"  can  be 
reduced  to  advantage  to  "  Huck  Finn." 


BINDING    RECORDS  III 

Special  books  must  be  specially  marked  of  course, 
and  books  in  sets  and  series  should  be  lettered  in 
the  same  style  throughout.  This  can  be  assured  by 
sending  a  sample  volume  or  a  rubbing  of  the  back. 
The  rubbing  is  got  by  laying  a  piece  of  paper  on  the 
back  of  the  volume  the  style  of  which  is  to  be  copied 
and  rubbing  it  hard  with  a  large,  soft  pencil  or  rub- 
off  wax. 

As  books  are  returned  they  should  be  checked  by 
whatever  record  was  kept  of  them.  Then  their 
number,  sizes  and  styles  should  be  entered  in  a  book 
kept  for  the  purpose.  From  these  items  the  bill  will 
be  checked  when  sent  in. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

Binding  Records  and  Notes,  Newark 

Rules  followed  in  Newark  Library  in  sending  books 

to  bindery. 

Remove  book  slip,  having  first  compared  its  num- 
ber with  the  number  on  the  book  pocket.  This 
book  slip  is  stamped  with  the  word  Bindery  and  with 
the  date,  and  then  is  filed  with  other  similar  slips, 
all  being  kept  in  groups  in  accordance  with  the  kinds 
of  binding  the  books  are  to  receive.  The  slips  for 
the  books  sent  each  month  are  also  put  together. 

On  the  title  page  of  the  book  underline  with  light 
pencil  marks  such  words  as  are  to  be  gilded  on  the 
back.  Make  the  title  for  the  back  as  short  as  it 
can  be  made  without  loss  of  identity.  If  the  name 
on  the  title  page  is  a  pseudonym,  write  the  author's 
correct  name  beside  it  in  small  letters. 

Most  books  are  sent  in  groups  with  a  general  note 
of  instruction  as  to  the  binding  of  the  whole  group. 
For  example,  a  hundred  books  may  be  sent  in  one 
lot  with  a  note  saying,  "  Bind  in  pigskin  in  the  usual 
style." 

When  special  bindings  are  required,  which  call  for 
special  instructions,  tip  slightly  in  the  front  of  the 
book,  usually  on  the  title  page,  a  slip  of  yellow  paper 
3x5  inches.  Bright  yellow  is  chosen  because  it  is 


BINDING    RECORDS    AND    NOTES,    NEWARK          113 

easily  distinguished  from  the  white  paper  of  the 
book,  even  at  night,  and  yet  writing  on  it  is  quite 
legible.  On  this  slip  write  the  call  number  of  the 
book,  the  special  style  of  binding  wanted  and  other 
remarks  when  needed,  such  as  the  following: 

Rush.     If  the  book  is  to  be  returned  in  haste. 

See  sample.  When  book  is  one  of  two  or  more 
volumes  and  a  special  style  of  binding  is  to  be  carried 
out  through  the  whole  set. 

Do  not  trim  at  all.  When  the  book  is  of  some 
special  character  and  it  is  desired  to  preserve  all  the 
paper. 

When  books  come  back  from  the  bindery  stamp 
the  date  of  their  return  on  the  lower  left  corner  of 
the  back  cover  immediately  on  their  receipt.  Add 
to  this  date  the  name  of  the  binder  if  the  library 
employs  more  than  one  firm. 

This  date  makes  it  possible  to  tell  how  bindings 
wear,  how  many  years  they  last,  etc. 

Note  the  style  of  binding  of  each  book  and  look 
for  its  book  slip  among  the  other  slips  for  books  of 
this  style. 

For  some  reasons  it  would  be  wise  to  keep  the 
slips  from  all  books  sent  to  the  bindery  in  one  alpha- 
betical series.  In  the  Newark  Library  this  proves 
not  to  be  as  convenient  as  the  method  described,  of 
keeping  it  first  by  days  or  months  and  next  by  styles 
of  binding. 

Examine  the  lettering  and  the  numbers  on  the 
back  to  see  if  they  are  correct,  comparing  with 
the  title  page.  Examine  also  the  binding  throughout. 


114  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

If  all  is  satisfactory,  put  pockets  and  book  plates 
in  all  the  books  which  require  them. 

Mark  the  pockets.  Open  each  book  carefully 
and  thoroughly  that  the  back  may  be  loosened  and 
made  more  flexible. 

All  magazines  send  with  yellow  slips  containing 
directions  as  to  style  of  binding,  etc. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

Bindery  Equipment 

The  small  library  will  find  it  does  not  pay  to  have 
a  bindery  of  its  own.  This  is  a  safe  general  rule  to 
which  there  are  exceptions,  of  course.  Special  con- 
ditions, such  as  remoteness  from  good  binderies, 
may  make  it  worth  while  for  a  library  which  spends 
only  about  $1,000  a  year  in  binding  to  put  in  a  small 
plant  and  do  its  own  work.  Even  then,  however, 
it  is  usually  better  to  find  a  binder  who  will  take 
the  contract  from  the  library  at  a  fixed  price  per 
volume,  using  the  library's  room  and  material. 
Such  a  binder  can  sometimes  get  additional  work 
from  other  libraries  or  from  private  individuals. 
It  should  be  noted  that  the  amount  paid  for  binding 
is  not  quite  all  that  a  binder  who  works  in  the  library 
may  expect  to  divert  to  his  own  shop;  for  a  clever 
and  obliging  workman  will  make  himself  useful  in 
repairing  and  in  doing  many  small  jobs  of  cutting, 
mounting,  etc.,  which  will  add  a  good  deal  to  his 
income.  Still,  as  I  have  said,  the  small  library  will 
usually  find  that  it  is  not  economical  to  have  its 
own  bindery.  Were  there  in  this  country  plenty 
of  commercial  binderies,  where  first-rate  work  is 
done  at  fair  prices — I  do  not  mean  low  prices — it 
would  not  pay  even  the  larger  libraries  to  open  their 

us 


Il6  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

own  binderies.  The  large  shop  is  the  only  place  in 
which  some  of  the  most  important  economies  are 
possible,  and  only  the  large  shop  can  afford  to  hire 
the  most  competent  foremen  and  workers.  Eve_i 
the  large  libraries  find  it  wise  to  rent  their  binderies 
to  competent  men  who  will  do  binding  at  contract 
prices.  Under  this  arrangement  some  libraries  find 
it  pays  to  give  up  room  to  a  bindery;  though,  as  I 
have  already  remarked,  they  would  not  find  it  eco- 
nomical to  do  so  were  there  efficient  library  binding 
establishments  in  the  immediate  vicinity. 

As  the  large  libraries  have  a  good  deal  of  work 
which  the  average  commercial  binder  does  not  care 
to  take,  like  map  mounting,  rare-book  mending,  and 
ordinary  book  repairs,  the  ideal  condition  for  them 
would  be  a  small  bindery  with  two  or  three  hands, 
in  the  building;  a  contract  for  all  ordinary  binding 
and  rebinding  with  an  outsider,  and  the  purchase 
of  many  new  books  especially  bound  direct  from  the 
sheets. 

The  following  list  includes  the  machinery,  tools 
and  materials  needed  in  opening  a  bindery.  The 
full  list  would  equip  fairly  well  a  shop  employing  one 
foreman,  who  is  also  a  finisher;  one  forwarder;  one 
boy  (helper  or  apprentice),  and  three  girls  for  sewing. 
This  shop  would  turn  out,  say,  10,000  books  a  year, 
its  output  depending  very  largely  on  the  character 
of  the  work. 

If  the  shop  is  to  bind,  say,  only  2,000  books  per 
year  the  items  marked  S  on  the  list  will  prove  suffi- 
cient. These  estimates  are  very  general. 


BINDERY    EQUIPMENT  1 17 

Equipment  for  Bindery 

Standing  press,  large $100.00 

S  Standing  press,  small 30 .  oo 

S  Board  shears   $100  to  125.00 

S  2  backers,  1 7-inch 65  .  oo 

S  Cutting  machine 325  .  oo 

S   lo-case  type  cabinet  (6-case  $8.00) 12  .  oo 

S  Finishing  press,  2 i-inch 2.75 

S  Lettering  pallet . .      6.00 

S  20  brass-bound  boards,  16x24,  at  $3.25  per  board  65.00 

Case  for  14  boards - 4  .  oo 

1 6  press  boards,  16x24 16 .00 

1 6  press  boards,  10x13 7.20 

1 4  press  boards,  8x12 5-6o 

S  3  sewing  benches,  at  $i .  oo 3  .  oo 

S  2  back  saws,  at  $i .  oo 2  .  oo 

S  3  bone  folders .36 

S  i  glue  brush,  No.  4 '. i .  oo 

S  2  paste  brushes,  No.  7 2  .  oo 

S  2  backing  hammers,  at  $i . 25 2  .  50 

S  Knives  and  shears 3  .  oo 

S  Gas  stove i .  oo 

Iron  bench-block,  15x12x2  inches 7.  50 

S  Glue  kettle i .  oo 

Compass i .  oo 

S  Gold  cushion 3  .  oo 

S  Gold  knife 75 

4  tables,  benches,  drawers 100 .  oo 

S  Paring  knife .50 

S  Band  nippers 2.00 

S  Flat  polisher 2.00 

S  Round  polisher 3  .  50 

S  Creaser i .  50 

S  Agate  burnishers 3.75 

S  Band  rubber 1.50 

Rolls  and  stamps 20 .  oo 


Il8  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

S  Type,  ordinary,  4  fonts  at  $3.00;  brass,  3  fonts  at 

$15-00 $    57-oo 

Shelving  and  bookcases 100  .  oo 

Total $1083.41 

With  treble  the  number  of  books  to  be  bound,  there  should 
be  added  to  the  above  list : 

i  large  press $100.00 

i  backer 65 .00 

i  finishing  press 2.75 

30  brass-bound  boards,  16x24,  at  $3.25  per  board  97.50 

5  sewing  benches,  at  $i .  oo 5  .  oo 

i  back-saw,  at  $i .  oo i .  oo 

5  bone  folders .60 

1  glue  brush,  No.  4 i .  oo 

3  paste  brushes,  No.  7 3  .  oo 

2  backing  hammers,  at  $i .  2 5 2.50 

Glue  kettle i .  oo 

Compass i .  oo 

Knives  and  shears 3  .  oo 

Gold  knife 75 

Paring  knife .50 

Band  nippers 2.00 

Type 1 5  •  0° 

Lettering  pallet 6.00 

Iron  bench  block 7-5° 


Total $315-10 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

List  of  Technical  Terms,  Leathers  and  Other  Bind- 
ing Materials,  Tools,  Styles  of  Ornament  Used 
in  Binding 

The  quotations  are  from  the  report  of  committee 
on  leather  of  the  Society  of  Arts,  England,  1901. 

Aldine  or  Italian  Style.  Ornaments  of  solid  face 
without  any  shading  whatever,  such  as  used  by  Aldus 
and  other  early  Italian  printers.  The  ornaments  are 
of  Arabic  character.  A  style  appropriate  for  early 
printed  literature. 

Ail-along.  When  a  volume  is  sewed,  and  the 
thread  passes  from  kettlestitch  to  kettlestitch,  or 
from  end  to  end  in  each  sheet,  it  is  said  to  be  sewed 
ail-along. 

American  Russia.     See  Cowhide. 

Antique.     See  Blind-tooled. 

Arabesque  Style.  A  fanciful  mixture  of  animals, 
birds,  insects,  and  of  plants,  fruits  and  foliage,  in- 
volved and  twisted. 

Arming  press.     See  Blocking  press. 

Art  canvas.  A  book  cloth,  made  in  several  colors 
by  the  Holliston  Mills,  67  Fifth  Ave.,  New  York; 
Jos.  Bancroft  &  Sons,  Wilmington,  Del.  (A.  D. 
Smith,  35  Thomas  St.,  New  York,  agent);  the  Inter- 
laken  Mills,  in  Duane  st.,  New  York,  and  others. 

119 


120  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

It  is  known  both  as  art  canvas  and  buckram.  The 
Newark  library,  in  experimenting  to  find  a  substitute 
for  leather,  tried  in  succession  the  green,  red,  brown 
and  blue.  The  green  proved  the  poorest,  the  blue 
made  by  Holliston  Mills  the  best  in  wearing  quality. 
One  reason  for  the  poor  results  with  all  the  colors 
tried,  with  the  exception  of  the  blue,  is  that  the  cloth 
of  these  colors  is  made  with  a  colored  thread  running 
one  way  and  a  gray  or  white  thread  the  other;  the 
colored  thread  soon  wears  off  on  the  edges  and  corners 
and  the  gray  thread  gives  the  book  a  very  dingy 
appearance.  Dark  blue  has  given  us  the  best  results. 
Art  canvas  costs  22  cents  a  square  yard  by  the  roll 
of  40  yards. 

Art  vellum.  A  book  cloth  made  in  several  colors 
and  styles  of  finish  by  the  firms  which  make  art  can- 
vas. It  is  not  suitable  for  full  binding  on  books 
subject  to  much  wear.  It  costs  about  16  cents  per 
square  yard.  Most  publishers'  bindings  are  in  cloth 
of  the  art  vellum  grade. 

Our  own  experience  with  art  canvas  and  art  vellum 
for  full  bindings  on  books  much  used  seems  to  have 
been  that  of  many  other  libraries.  Popular  books 
in  these  materials  from  about  a  dozen  public  libraries 
all  seem  to  have  worn  poorly.  The  joints  soon 
become  soft  and  loose ;  the  corners  fray  out  and  look 
ragged ;  the  gold  of  the  titles  does  not  stand  out  well 
when  first  put  on  and  rapidly  grows  dim. 

Azure'  tools.  Used  in  binding,  where  the  heavy 
and  wide  marks,  instead  of  being  a  solid  mass,  are 
made  with  horizontal  lines. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      121 

Azured  style.  Ornamentations  outlined  in  gold 
and  crossed  with  horizontal  lines  in  the  manner  of 
indicating  azure  in  heraldry 

Back,  tight  and  loose.  Binding  is  said  to  be  tight 
back  when  the  leather,  cloth  or  other  material  of 
the  back  is  pasted"  or  glued  to  the  back  of  the  book. 
This  style  of  binding  is  commonly  used  in  fine  work. 
Most  books,  often  quite  large  ones,  were  formerly 
bound  in  this  way. 

Binding  is  said  to  be  loose  back -when  the  leather, 
cloth  or  other  material  of  the  back  is  fastened  to 
the  book  only  along  the  joints.  To  the  question, 
which  is  the  better  binding  for  library  books,  no 
definite  answer  can  be  given. 

Backing.  Bending  over  the  folds  at  the  back  of 
a  book  to  form  a  ridge  or  projection  called  a  joint. 


Backing  Boards,  Metal  Backing  Boards,  Wood, 

Steel  Faced 


Backing  boards.  Used  for  backing  or  forming  the 
joint.  They  are  made  of  very  hard  wood  or  faced 
with  iron,  and  are  thicker  on  the  edge  intended  to 
form  the  groove  than  upon  the  edge  that  goes  toward 
the  fore-edge  of  the  book,  so  that  when  placed  one 
each  side  of  the  book  and  all  are  placed  in  the  laying 


122  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

press,  the  whole  power  of  the  press  is  directed  toward 
the  back. 

Backing  hammer.  The 
hammer  used  for  backing 
and  rounding.  It  has  a 
broad,  flat  face  similar  to  a 
shoemaker's  hammer. 

Backing  machine.     A  ma- 
chine   for    backing    books. 
Backing  Hammer 

If  not   carefully  handled  it 

is  apt  to  injure  books  by  crushing  and  breaking  the 
paper  at  the  folds.  Used  on  publishers'  binding. 

Backing  press.  A  press  having  two,  vertically 
mounted,  steel  plates  brought  together  by  a  screw. 
A  book  is  held  in  this  press  with  the  back  slightly 
projecting  above  the  plates,  and  then  backed  with  a 
hammer. 

Band -driver.  A  tool  used  in  forwarding  to  cor- 
rect irregularities  in  the  bands  of  flexible  backs. 

Band  nippers.  Pinchers  with  flat  jaws  used  for 
straightening  bands  by  nipping  up  the  leather  after 
it  is  in  place.  They  should  be  nickeled  to  prevent 
the  iron  staining  the  leather. 

Bands.  The  strings,  cord  or  twine  on  which  a 
book  is  sewed.  They  are  usually  made  of  hemp,  are 
loosely  twisted,  are  2,  3,  4-ply  according  to  the  size 
of  the  book,  and  cost  about  35  cents  per  pound. 
This  twine  is  loosely  twisted  that  it  may  be  flexible 
and  less  likely  to  break  when  glued  and  dried,  and 
that  it  may  be  easily  frayed  out  at  the  ends  for 
pasting  down  on  the  inside  of  the  covers. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       123 

When  the  book  is  sewed  flexible  the  bands  appear 
upon  the  back.     When  the  back  is  so  sawn  as  to  let 


Backing  Press 

in  the  twine,  the  appearance  of  raised  bands  is  pro- 
duced, if  at  all,  by  gluing  narrow  strips  of  leather 
across  the  back  before  the  volume  is  covered.  A 


124  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

hard,  closely  twisted  cord  is  also  sometimes  used  in 
fine  binding. 

Bastard  title.     See  Half-title. 

Bead.  A  little  roll  formed  by  the  knots  of  the 
headband. 

Beating  hammer.  The  heavy,  short-handled  ham- 
mer used  in  beating,  weigh- 
ing generally  about  10  Ibs. 
Books  are  beaten  to  make 
the  leaves  lie  close  to  one 

another. 
Beating  Hammer 

Beating  stone.     The  bed  of 

stone  or  iron  on  which  books  are  beaten. 

Beveled  boards.  Very  heavy  boards  for  sides, 
chamfered  along  the  edges. 

Binder.  A  temporary  cover  for  periodicals  and 
pamphlets,  usually  so  arranged  that  it  may  be  taken 
off  and  attached  to  successive  numbers  of  a  publi- 
cation. 

Bindery.     A  book-binding  establishment. 

Blank  books.  Applied  to  a  large  variety  of  books 
which  are  bound  with  blank  leaves,  or  leaves  having 
ruled  lines  and  little  or  no  printing:  account  books, 
memorandum  books,  ledgers,  etc.  The  binding  of 
such  books  is  a  special  trade. 

Bleed.  When  a  book  on  being  trimmed  is  so  cut 
that  some  of  the  print  is  taken  off  it  is  said  to  bleed. 

Blind -tooled.  When  tools  are  impressed  upon 
the  leather,  without  gold,  they  are  said  to  be  blind 
or  blank,  and  the  book  is  blind-tooled.  This  tooling 
is  sometimes  called  antique. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       12$ 

Blocking  press.  Another  and  more  general  term 
for  the  stamping  or  arming  press;  one  of  the  chief 
implements  used  in  cloth  work.  Used  for  finishing 
or  decorating  the  sides  and  back  of  a  cover  by  a 
mechanical  process. 

Board  papers.  Those  parts  of  the  end  papers 
which  are  pasted  onto  the  boards. 

Board  shears.  Heavy  shears,  usually  fitted  to  a 
table,  and  with  a  gauge  for  cutting  boards. 

Boards.  Are  of  several  kinds,  such  as  pressing, 
backing,  cutting,  burnishing,  gilding,  etc.  The  paste- 


Boards,  Brass  Bound,  in  Case 

boards  used  for  side  covers  are  termed  boards.  The 
boards  used  for  cutting  books  "out  of  boards"  are 
called  steamboat-boards.  Tinned  boards  are  used 
for  finished  work,  while  brass  or  iron-bound  boards 


126  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

are  used  for  pressing  cloth-work.  See  also  In 
boards. 

Bock  morocco.  The  name  given  to  a  leather 
made  of  Persian  sheepskin  usually  finished  in  imi- 
tation of  morocco.  It  does  not  wear  well  and  soon 
decays. 

Bodkin  or  stabbing -awl.  A  strong  point  of  iron 
or  steel  fixed  in  a  wooden  handle  to  form  the  holes 
in  boards  through  which  to  lace  bands.  Used  also 
for  tracing  lines  for  cutting  fore-edges. 

Bolt.     Folded  edge  of  sheets  in  an  unopened  book. 

Books,  sizes  of.  See  folio,  quarto,  octavo,  six- 
teenmo, thirty-twomo,  etc. 

Bosses.  Brass  or  other  metal  ornaments  fastened 
upon  the  boards  of  books. 

Brass-bound  boards.     See  Boards. 

Broken  up.  When  plates  are  folded  over  a  short 
distance  from  the  back  edge  before  they  are  placed 
in  the  book,  that  they  may  be  turned  easily,  they  are 
said  to  be  broken  up.  The  same  process  is  some- 
times applied  to  an  entire  book. 

Buckram.  Properly  a  coarse  linen  cloth,  stiffened 
with  glue  or  gum.  Most  buckram,  so-called,  is  made 
of  cotton.  See  also  Linen-finish  buckram  and  Art 
canvas. 

Buffing.  The  name  given  to  the  thin  sheet  of 
cowhide  taken  off  in  the  operation  of  buffing  or 
splitting.  It  is  usually  of  very  inferior  quality. 

Buffingette.     See  Keratol. 

Burnished.  The  effect  produced  by  the  applica- 
tion of  a  burnisher  to  edges. 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   127 

Burnishers.  Pieces  of  agate  or  bloodstone  affixed 
to  handles.  With  them  a  gloss  is  produced  on  the 
edges  of  a  book. 

Calf  or  calfskin.  Leather  made  of  calves'  skins. 
It  has  a  smooth  and  uniform  surface.  It  was  for- 
merly much  used  in  binding,  and  is  very  beautiful; 
but  that  made  in  recent  years  lasts  only  a  short  time, 
soon  growing  hard  and  brittle  and  even  falling  into 
dust.  Even  when  new  the  surface  is  easily  broken 
and  torn. 

"  During  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century 
it  became  customary  to  pare  down  calf  until  it  was 
as  thin  as  paper.  Since  about  1830  little  sound  calf 
seems  to  have  been  made,  as,  whether  thick  or  thin, 
it  appears  generally  to  have  perished,  turning  red 
and  crumbling  into  dust." 

"Sprinkled  or  marbled  calf  is  in  a  specially  bad 
state." 

See  also  Divinity,  Kip,  Marbled,  Sprinkled  and 
Tree  calf. 

Calf-lined.  When  the  inside  of  a  limp  cover  is 
lined  with  calfskin,  this  taking  the  place  of  that 
half  of  the  end  paper  which  is  usually  on  the  inside 
of  the  cover.  This  calf  lining  is  thin  and  soft  and  is 
usually  glued  to  the  leather  cover  only  at  the  latter's 
outer  edges,  thus  leaving  the  cover  pliable. 

Cancels.  Leaves  containing  errors  which  are  to 
be  cut  out  and  replaced  with  corrected  pages. 

Canvas.     See  Duck. 

Caps.  Paper  coverings  used  to  protect  the  edges 
while  the  book  is  being  covered  and  finished.  Also 


128  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

the  leather  coverings  of  headbands.  See  Head 
cap. 

Case  bindings.  The  ordinary  cloth  binding  of 
commerce.  Books  in  these  bindings  are  folded  and 
sewn,  rounded  and  backed  by  machinery.  A  ma- 
chine also  makes  the  cases,  covering  the  two  pieces 
of  cardboard  which  form  the  sides  with  cloth  as 
needed.  These  cases  are  separately  printed  before 
being  put  on  the  books.  The  book  is  then  glued 
and  put  into  its  case  by  machinery. 

Catchword.  A  word  placed  under  the  last  line 
on  each  page  of  some  old-time  books,  the  word  being 
the  same  as  the  first  word  on  the  next  page;  a  direc- 
tion word. 

Center  tools.  Tools  cut  for  ornamentation  of 
center  of  panels  and  sides  of  book  covers. 

Circuit  edges.  Bibles  and  prayer-books  are  some- 
times bound  with  projecting  covers  turned  over  to 
protect  the  leaves;  these  are  called  circuit  or  divinity 
edges. 

Clasp.  A  hook  or  catch  for  fastening  the  covers 
of  a  book  together,  usually  at  the  fore  edge. 

Clearing  out.  Removing  the  waste  paper  and 
paring  away  superfluous  leather  upon  the  inside, 
preparatory  to  pasting  down  the  lining-paper. 

Cloth  boards.     Stiff  boards  covered  with  cloth. 

Cobden-Sanderson  style.  An  arrangement  of  grace- 
ful curves  or  stems,  flowers,  buds  and  leaves,  treated 
conventionally;  the  background  being  often  pow- 
dered with  nebulae  of  gold  stars  or  dots.  The  letter- 
ing of  title,  etc.,  on  back  and  sides  is  treated  fanci- 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      I2Q 

fully  and  often  made  an  integral  part  of  the 
design. 

Collating.  Examining  the  signatures,  or  sheets, 
after  a  volume  is  gathered,  to  ascertain  if  they 
be  correct  and  follow  in  numerical  order.  Also, 
examining  a  book  page  by  page  to  see  if  it  is  com- 
plete. 

Combs.  Instruments  with"  wire  teeth  used  in 
marbling.  The  colors  being  upon  the  surface  of 
water,  the  comb  is  drawn  across  a  portion  in  such 
a  way  that  a  new  form  is  developed. 

Corners.  Leather  pieces  pasted  on  the  corners 
of  a  half-bound  or  three-quarter-bound  book. 

Cowhide.  The  thick,  coarse  leather  made  from 
the  skin,  of  a  cow.  By  binders  it  is  commonly  known 
as  "American  Russia,"  or  " imitation  Russia."  It 
is  much  used  for  binding  popular  books  of  fiction. 
It  has  a  slight  grain  or  corrugation  on  the  surface, 
is  tough  and  strong,  takes  gilding  well,  wears  well  and 
if  of  best  quality  and  handled  much  is  usually  quite 
durable;  that  is,  will  last  five  or  six  years  on  popular 
fiction. 

Greaser.  The  tool  used  in  marking  each  side  of 
the  bands,  generally  made  of  steel. 

Cropped.  When  a  book  has  been  cut  down  too 
much  it  is  said  to  be  cropped. 

Crushed.  Leather  which  has  been  pressed  between 
sheets  of  metal  to  smooth  or  give  a  finish  to  its  coarse 
grain  is  said  to  be  crushed.  The  process  is  usually 
applied  to  morocco  or  its  imitations.  See  Crushed 
levant. 


130  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Crushed  levant.  Levant  morocco  with  the  grain 
crushed  down  until  the  surface  is  smooth  and  highly 
polished.  In  fine  binding  this  is  done  by  hand  after 
the  leather  is  on  the  book.  Most  crushed  levant 
morocco,  however,  is  surfaced  by  a  machine  before 
it  is  applied  to  the  book. 

Cut  edges.     See  Edges  cut. 

Cut  flush.  Means  that  the  cloth  cover,  which  is 
usually  limp  (without  boards) ,  is  drawn  on  the  book 
and  the  whole  cut  at  once,  cover  and  all,  the  edge 
of  the  cover  being  cut  flush  with  the  edge  of  the  book. 
It  is  a  suitable  way  of  binding  only  when  strength 
and  elegance  are  not  required. 

Cutter,  or  Cutting  machine.  The  machine  on 
which  the  edges  of  the  leaves  of  books  are  cut  or 
trimmed.  Running  such  a  machine  is  now  a  special 
branch  of  the  binder's  trade.  Sometimes  called  a 
guillotine. 

Cutting  boards.  Wedged-shaped  boards  somewhat 
like  backing-boards,  but  with  the  top  edge  square; 
used  in  cutting  the  edge  of  a  book  and  in  edge- 
gilding. 

Cutting  in  boards.  Cutting  the  edges  of  a  book 
with  a  plough  after  the  boards  are  laced  on. 

Cutting  press.  When  a  lying  press  is  turned  so 
that  the  side  with  the  runners  is  uppermost  it  is 
called  a  cutting  press. 

Dandy.  A  roller  affixed  to  paper-making  machines. 
The  wet  web  of  paper  carried  on  the  endless  wire  of 
the  machine  passes  under  this  roller  and  is  pressed 
by  it.  It  gives  the  laid  or  wove  appearance  to  the 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      131 

sheet,  and  when  letters,  figures,  or  other  devices  are 
worked  in  fine  wire  on  its  surface  it  produces  the 
effect  known  as  water-marking. 

Deckle -edge.     The  rough  un trimmed  edge  of  hand- 
made paper.     Deckle-edges   are  poorly  imitated  by 


Oswego  Hand  Wheel  Drive  Cutter 

cutting  and  tearing  machine-made  paper,  sometimes 
with  the  aid  of  a  jet  of  water. 

Dentelle  border.  A  tooled  pointed  border  with 
finely  dotted  or  Gascon  ornaments  in  imitation  of 
lace. 


132  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Derome  style.  This  style  has  ornaments  of  a 
leafy  character,  with  a  more  solid  face,  though  lightly 
shaded  by  the  graver.  The  ornaments  are  often 
styled  Renaissance,  being  an  entire  change  from 
the  Gascon.  The  Derome  is  best  exemplified  in 
borders,  Vandyke  in  design;  it  is  simple  in  construc- 
tion but  rich  in  effect,  and  is  appropriate  for  art 
publications.  Time,  eighteenth  century. 

Diaper.  A  term  applied  to  a  small  repeating  all- 
over  pattern.  From  woven  material  decorated  in 
this  way. 

Divinity  calf.  A  dark  brown  calf  bookbinding 
decorated  with  blind  stamping,  and  without  gilding; 
so  called  because  formerly  used  in  binding  theologi- 
cal books. 

Divinity  edges.     See  Circuit  edges. 

Double.     See  Doublure. 

Doublure.  The  inside  face  of  the  boards,  espe- 
cially applied  to  them  when  lined  with  leather  and 
decorated.  When  thus  lined  a  cover  is  said  to  be 
"double." 

Duck,  sometimes  called  Canvas.  This  is  made 
by  many  firms  in  a  wide  range  of  colors  and  quali- 
ties. It  is  in  fact  a  heavy  cotton  cloth.  Slate- 
colored  duck  28  in.  wide,  10  oz.  to  the  yard,  costs 
about  20  cents  per  yard.  This  is  a  firmly  woven, 
smooth  material.  We  have  used  a  light  green.  It 
takes  printers'  ink  for  lettering  fairly  well,  though  it 
soon  soils  if  handled.  It  is  a  very  desirable  binding 
for  heavy  books  not  much  used.  All  such  books 
should  be  stiffened  by  pasting  or  gluing  cloth  on  the 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      133 

backs,  if  loose  back,  and  should  be  reinforced  at 
head  and  tail. 

Dutch  metal.  An  imitation  of  gold  leaf,  some- 
times used  on  cheap  bindings.  It  soon  grows  dark 
or  tarnishes. 

Edges  cut.  A  book  or  pamphlet  cut  down  suffi- 
ciently to  make  all  the  edges  quite  smooth. 

Edges  gilt.     Book  edges  cut  and  gilded. 

Edges  opened.  A  book  or  pamphlet  opened,  the 
folds  of  the  leaves  being  cut  by  hand  with  a  paper 
knife. 

Edges  red.     Book  edges  cut  and  colored  red. 

Edges  rolled.  When  the  edges  of  the  covers  are 
marked  with  a  roll,  either  in  gold  or  blind. 

Edges  rounded.  Corners  rounded  to  prevent  their 
becoming  dog's-eared. 

Edges  trimmed.  A  book  or  pamphlet  with  the 
edges  cut  enough  to  make  them  tidy,  but  not  enough 
to  cut  the  folds  of  the  leaves. 

Edges  untouched.  A  book  or  pamphlet  with  edges 
uncut  and  unopened. 

Edition  de  luxe.  Applied  to  large  paper  editions 
of  books,  and  to  special  editions  which  are  in  fact, 
or  are  claimed  to  be,  unusually  well  and  expensively 
made. 

Embossed.  When  a  plate  is  so  stamped  upon  a 
sheet  or  cover  as  to  produce  a  raised  figure  or  design. 

End  leaves  or  Lining  papers.  Are  the  sheets  which 
are  pasted  to  the  inside  of  the  covers,  and  are  either 
plain  white  or  colored,  according  to  the  style  of  bind- 
ing. Marbled  papers  are  largely  used  on  fine  leather 


134  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

work.  Sometimes  in  fine  bindings  the  end  leaves 
are  made  of  silk  or  leather. 

End  papers.  The  papers  placed  at  each  end  of 
the  volume  and  pasted  down  upon  the  boards.  Also, 
the  paper  placed  at  each  end  of  the  volume,  a  portion 
of  which  is  usually  removed  when  the  lining-paper 
is  pasted  down  upon  the  boards. 

English  linen  or  Low  buckram.  A  linen  cloth, 
highly  polished,  well  colored,  strong,  durable,  made 
in  England,  and  costing  in  this  country  about  70 
cents  per  square  yard.  In  De  Jonge's  list  (De  Jonge, 
dealer  in  leather,  book  cloths,  etc.,  69-73  Duane  St., 
New  York)  it  is  called  Low  buckram.  We  have 
used  it  for  the  backs  of  books,  light  and  heavy.  It 
promises  to  stand  indefinitely  if  not  much  handled. 
Under  handling  it  grows  soft  and  flabby  like  other 
book  cloths,  though  not  rapidly,  and  without  losing 
its  strength.  We  have  discarded  it  for  the  books 
on  which  we  first  tried  it,  periodicals  subject  to  much 
use.  It  is  not  easy  to  letter  in  gold  by  hand,  and 
does  not  hold  gold  well  under  wear. 

Eve  style.  A  framework  of  various  geometrical- 
shaped  compartments  linked  together  by  interlaced 
circles;  the  centers  of  the  compartments  are  filled 
with  small  floral  ornaments  and  the  irregular  spaces 
surrounding  them  with  circular  scrolls  and  branches 
of  laurel  and  palm.  An  elaborate  style  of  the  end  of 
the  sixteenth  and  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

Extra  binding.     A  trade  term  for  the  best  work. 

Fanfare  style.  When  the  compartments  on  a 
decorated  corner  fojmed  by  fillets  or  curves,  or  both, 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   135 

are  filled  with  little  branches,  vines,  etc.,  the  style 
of  decoration  is  said  to  be  fanfare — from  its  first 
having  been  used  on  a  book  of  which  this  word 
formed  the  principal  part  of  the  title, 

Fillet.  A  cylindrical  tool  upon  which  a  line, 
lines,  or  figures  are  engraved.  Used  in  finishing. 

Finishing.  The  department  which  receives  books 
after  they  are  put  in  leather,  and  ornaments  them  as 


Finishing  Presses 

required.  It  includes  lettering,  tooling,  polishing, 
etc.  Also,  the  ornaments  placed  on  a  book.  One 
who  works  at  this  branch  is  termed  a  finisher. 

Finishing  press.  A  small  press  with  which  a  book 
is  held  firmly  with  its  back  upward  and  exposed  for 
work. 

Finishing  stove.  A  small  gas  heater,  similar  to  a 
"hot  plate,"  for  heating  finishing  tools. 

Flexible  binding.  When  a  book  is  sewn  on  raised 
bands  or  cords  and  the  thread  is  passed  entirely 


136 


BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 


round  each  band,  and  the  whole  binding  is  such  as  to 
permit  the  book  to  be  opened  readily. 

Flexible  glue.  This  is  usually  made  by  adding 
about  two  tablespoonfuls  of  glycerine  to  half  a 
pound  of  the  glue  in  a  dry  state. 

This  glue  used  on  the  backs  of  books  makes  the 


FINISHING 
STAND. 


Finishing  Stand 

binding  somewhat  more  flexible.  It  cannot  be 
recommended  for  all  books  in  all  cases  as  the  gly- 
cerine tends  to  weaken  the  glue,  at  the  same  time 
that  it  prevents  it  from  becoming  very  hard. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,     ETC.       137 

Flexible  sewing.  When  the  cord  rests  on  instead 
of  being  sunk  into  the  back  and  the  thread  is  carried 
around  it;  a  book  thus  sewn  usually  opens  freely. 

Flush  cut.     See  Cut  flush. 

Fly  leaves.  The  blank  leaves  at  the  beginning 
and  end  of  a  book,  between  the  end  papers  and  the 
book  proper. 

Folder.  A  flat  piece  of  bone  or  ivory  used  in 
folding  the  sheets  and  in  many  other  manipulations. 
Also  applied  to  the  person  engaged  in  folding 
sheets. 

Folio.  A  sheet  folded  once,  consisting  of  two 
leaves,  or  four  pages;  the  size  of  the  sheet  being 
usually  understood  as  about  19x24  inches,  giving  a 
leaf  19x12  inches.  Also,  the  consecutive  page  num- 
bers of  a  book,  pamphlet,  etc. 

Fore-edge.     The  front  edge  of  the  leaves. 

Forwarding.  All  processes  through  which  a  book 
passes  after  sewing,  other  than  those  of  ornamenta- 
tion by  means  of  tools  or  rolls.  Also  that  depart- 
ment which  takes  books  after  they  are  sewed  and 
advances  them  until  they  are  put  in  leather  ready  for 
the  finisher.  One  who  works  at  this  branch  is  termed 
a  forwarder. 

French  guard.  Made  by  turning  over  half  an  inch 
or  more  of  the  back  edge  of  a  printed  sheet  or  illus- 
tration and  then  folding  it  around  the  next  signature. 

French  joint.  A  joint  in  which  the  board  is  not 
brought  close  up  to  the  back,  thus  giving  more  play 
in  opening. 

French    morocco.     An    inferior    quality    of   levant 


138  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

morocco,  having  usually  a  smaller  and  less  promi- 
nent grain. 

Full-bound.  When  the  sides  and  back  of  a  book 
are  entirely  covered  with  one  piece  of  the  same 
material  it  is  said  to  be  full-bound. 

Gascon,  Le,  style.  The  distinguishing  feature  of 
this  style  is  the  dotted  face  of  the  ornaments  instead 
of  the  continuous  or  solid  line.  Wherever  these 
dotted  ornaments  are  used  the  style  is  called  Le 
Gascon.  Time,  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  immediately  following  that  of  Nicholas 
and  Clovis  Eve. 

Gathering.  The  process  of  collecting  the  several 
sheets  which  make  a  book  and  arranging  them 
according  to  the  signatures. 

Gaufre  edges.  Impressions  made  with  the  finish- 
er's tools  on  the  edges  of  the  book  after  gilding. 

Gauge.  The  tool  used  in  forwarding  to-  take  the 
correct  size  of  the  volume  and  to  mark  it  upon  the 
boards  for  squaring. 

Gilding  press.  A  press  made  of  two  square  blocks 
brought  together  by  screws,  to  hold  books  for  gilding. 

Gilt.  Applied  to  ornamental  work  on  covers  and 
also  to  edges  of  a  book;  in  the  latter  case,  chiefly 
used  for  the  top. 

Gilt  edges.     See  Edges  gilt. 

Gilt  tops.  Books  with  the  top  edges  cut  and 
gilded.  This  prevents  their  being  soiled  by  the 
dust  that  may  collect  on  them. 

Glair.  The  white  of  eggs  beaten  up  and  used  in 
finishing  and  gilding  the  edges  of  the  leaves. 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   139 

Goffered  edges.     See  Gaufre  edges. 

Gold  cushion.  A  cushion  of  leather  on  which  the 
finisher  cuts  gold  leaf  into  pieces. 

Gold  knife.  The  knife  for  cutting  the  gold  leaf; 
long  and  quite  straight. 

Gold  leaf.  Gold  'beaten  into  very  thin  leaves, 
occasionally  used  for  printing  purposes,  but  more 
particularly  for  the  decoration  of  book  covers 

Gouge.  A  gilding  tool  cut  to  impress  a  curved 
line  or  segment  of  a  circle  upon  the  leather 

Grain.  The  term  applied  to  the  outer  side  of  a 
piece  of  leather,  from  which  the  hair  was  removed. 
This  word  is  also  used  in  describing  the  different 
kinds  of  surface  given  to  leather  in  the  making, 
often  with  a  qualifying  adjective,  as,  seal-grain,  like 
the  grain  on  sealskin;  coarse  grain;  pebble-grained, 
that  is,  grained  in  an  irregular  manner,  as  though 
numerous  small  pebbles  of  different  sizes  had  been 
pressed  upon  its  surface ;  water  grain ;  smooth  grain ; 
brass  board  grain,  usually  put  into  cowskin,  etc. 

Graining.  The  process  of  giving  to  leather  sur- 
faces of  different  kinds. 

Grater.  An  iron  instrument  used  by  the  forwarder 
for  rubbing  backs  after  they  are  paste-washed. 

Grolier  style.  An  interlaced  framework  of  geomet- 
rical figures — circles,  squares,  and  diamonds — with 
scrollwork  running  through  it,  the  ornaments  of 
which  are  of  moresque  character,  generally  azured 
in  whole  or  in  part,  sometimes  in  outline  only. 
Parts  of  the  design  are  often  studded  with  gold 
dots.  Time,  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century. 


140  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Groove.  That  part  of  the  sections  which  is  turned 
over  in  backing  to  receive  the  board.  Also  called 
the  Joint. 

Guards.  Strips  of  paper  inserted  in  the  backs  of 
books  to  which  plates  or  pictures  or  any  extra  leaves 
are  to  be  attached.  These  strips  must  always  be 
cut  with  the  grain.  They  make  the  back  as  thick 
as  the  book  will  be  when  the  plates  have  been  attached 
to  them.  Also,  the  strips  of  paper  or  cloth  pasted 
along  the  folds  of  leaves  to  strengthen  them.  Also, 
the  strips  pasted  to  the  edges  of  single  leaves,  whether 
plates  or  not,  folded  about  the  next  signature  and 
sewn  through  with  it. 

Books  with  thick,  heavy  leaves  are  sometimes 
guarded  or  hinged  throughout  that  they  may  open 
freely.  A  narrow  strip  is  cut  from  the  back  of  each 
leaf.  This  strip  is  then  again  attached  to  the  leaf  from 
which  it  was  cut  by  a  strip  of  thin  paper  or  muslin 
which  acts  as  a  hinge.  The  leaves  are  then  bound 
together  through  and  by  the  strips  cut  from  them. 

Guides.  The  grooves  in  which  the  plough  moves 
upon  the  face  of  an  old-style  cutting-press. 

Guillotine.  A  machine  with  a  heavy  knife  having 
a  perpendicular  action,  used  for  cutting  paper. 
Usually  called  a  Cutter,  or  Cutting  machine. 

Half-bound.  When  the  back  of  a  book  is  covered 
with  leather  and  the  sides  with  paper  or  cloth.  Some 
binders  call  a  book  half-bound  when  it  has  leather 
on  the  back  and  small  pieces  on  the  corners.  Three- 
quarters  bound  means  wide  leather  back  and  large 
leather  corners. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      141 

Half-title.  The  brief  title  which  precedes  the  main 
title  page,  usually  a  single  line  in  plain  type;  the 
bastard  title. 

Hand  letters.  Letters  fixed  in  handles;  used 
singly  for  lettering. 

Head  and  tail.  The  top  and  bottom  of  the  back 
of  a  book. 

Headband.  The  silk  or  cotton  ornament  worked 
at  the  head  and  tail  of  a  book  to  give  it  a  finished 
look,  to  strengthen  it  and  to  make  the  back  even  with 
the  squares  or  boards  which  form  the  sides.  On 
cheap  binding  the  headband  is  cut  from  a  strip  of 
machine-made  material  and  pasted  in  merely  for 
ornament. 

Heel-ball.  A  preparation  of  wax  used  by  shoe- 
makers, in  the  form  of  a  ball,  in  burnishing  the  heels 
of  shoes. 

Head  cap.  The  fold  of  leather  over  the  head- 
band. 

Imitation  Russia.     See  Cowhide. 

Imperial  morocco  cloth.  A  grain-finished  linen- 
thread  cloth  manufactured  by  the  Winterbottom 
Book  Cloth  Company  of  England.  It  is  made  in 
different  colors;  of  these  the  library  has  tried  but 
one,  the  green.  On  books  which  have  some,  but 
not  constant  use,  it  is  a  very  good  substitute  for 
leather.  It  takes  lettering  well,  and  wears  better 
than  any  of  the  cloths  the  library  has  tried.  The 
price  is  48  cents  per  square  yard  by  the  roll,  fast 
color,  duty  paid.  (De  Jonge  &  Co.,  69-73  Duane 
St.,  New  York.) 


142  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

In  boards.  When  a  book  is  cut  after  the  boards 
are  affixed  to  form  the  sides,  it  is  said  to  be  cut  in 
boards.  The  term  is  also  applied  to  a  style  of  bind- 
ing in  which  the  boards  are  covered  with  paper  only. 

Inset.  When  one  sheet  is  placed  inside  of  another, 
both  being  folded. 

Inside  margins.  The  border  made  by  the  turn  in 
of  the  leather  on  the  inside  of  boards. 

Inside  tins.  Sheets  of  tin;  so  called  from  being 
placed  inside  the  boards  when  a  book  is  put  in  the 
standing-press. 

Jansen  style.  Without  line  or  ornament  either 
in  blank  or  gold.  It  permits  decoration  on  the  inside 
cover,  but  demands  absolute  plainness  on  the  out- 
side, with  the  exception  of  lettering.  It  is  only 
appropriate  for  crushed  levant,  it  being  dependent 
for  its  beauty  on  the  polished  surface  of  the  leather. 

Javelle  water.  To  one  pound  of  chloride  of  lime 
add  four  and  a  half  pints  of  water,  and  put  in  a 
jar  with  tight  cover.  Dissolve  20  oz.  of  ordinary 
washing  soda  in  four  and  a  half  pints  of  boiling 
water,  in  a  separate  vessel,  and  immediately  pour 
into  the  first  mixture.  When  cold  add  enough  water 
to  make  eleven  pints  in  all.  Strain  through  muslin, 
settle,  and  pour  off  the  clear  solution.  This  will 
remove  many  stains;  but  care  must  be  taken  to 
rinse  thoroughly  the  paper  with  water  after  using 
it,  as  it  tends  to  rot  paper . 

Joints.  The  projections  formed  in  backing  to 
admit  the  boards.  Also  the  leather  or  cloth,  with 
its  lining,  where  it  passes  from  the  book  proper  to 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       143 

the  boards  when  the  volume  is  covered;  that  is,  the 
part  of  the  binding  that  bends  when  the  boards  are 
opened.  See  also  French  joint. 

Justification.  The  process  of  making  the  pages 
of  a  book  lie  opposite  one  another  to  insure  a  straight 
and  equal  margin  throughout. 

Keratol,  the  B  B  B  grade,  or  Buffingette  manu- 
factured by  the  Keratol  Company,  cor.  Clifford  and 
Van  Buren  Sts.,  Newark,  N.  J.,  at  35  cents  per  yard. 
A  waterproof  cloth  made  in  imitation  of  leather.  It 
is  excellent  for  the  sides  of  books  which  receive  much 
wear,  as  it  does  not  show  either  finger  or  water  marks, 
and  outlasts  the  ordinary  book  cloth.  It  cannot  be 
recommended  for  full  binding  as  it  is  difficult  to 
letter  and  wears  away  quickly  at  the  joints.  At 
first  it  has  a  disagreeable  odor,  but  this  wears  off. 
An  objectionable  feature  is  that  labels  cannot  easily 
be  pasted  upon  it.  To  overcome  this  difficulty, 
put  a  thin  coat  of  shellac  on  the  place  where  the  label 
is  to  go.  The  objectionable  point  mentioned  is 
overbalanced  by  the  material's  good  qualities. 

Kettlestitch.  As  the  sewer  draws  the  thread  out 
through  the  hole  near  the  end  of  a  signature  she 
passes  it  between  the  two  preceding  signatures  and 
around  the  thread  which  connects  them,  before  she 
passes  it  into  the  hole  in  the  signature  she  next  lays 
on.  This  is  called  the  kettle-stitch,  a  word  said  to 
be  a  corruption  of  either  catch-up  stitch  or  chain 
stitch. 

Keys.  Little  metal  instruments  used  to  secure 
the  bands  to  the  sewing  bench. 


144  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Kip  calf.  Made  from  the  skin  of  a  heifer;  much 
stronger  than  ordinary  calf. 

Knocking -down  iron.  A  heavy  iron  plate  on  which 
are  placed  the  sides  of  a  laced-in  book  when  the 
lacings  of  string,  tape  or  vellum,  are  pounded  down 
with  a  hammer  so  they  will  not  show  when  the  book 
is  covered. 

Laced  in.  When  the  boards  are  affixed  to  the 
volume  by  passing  the  bands,  strings,  or  tapes  on 
which  it  is  sewn  through  holes  made  in  the  boards, 
they  are  said  to  be  laced  in. 

Laid  paper.  Having  lines  water-marked  in  it, 
running  through  it  at  equal  distances  apart,  the  lines 
being  thin  places  made  by  the  pressure  of  projections 
on  the  dandy-roll. 

Laying  press.     See  Lying  press. 

Law  sheep.  Law  books  are  usually  bound  in  sheep 
left  wholly  uncolored,  hence  the  term.  Many  law 
books  are  now  bound  in  buckram,  canvas  or  duck. 

Leatherette.  Cloth  or  paper  made  to  look  like 
leather.  There  are  many  kinds  used  in  binding, 
some  of  which  look  very  well  and  wear  about  as  long 
as  poorer  kinds  of  cloth. 

Lettering  block.  A  piece  of  wood  of  about  the 
size  and  shape  of  a  large  book.  Leather  labels 
which  are  to  be  lettered  in  gold  are  laid  on  the  rounded 
edge  of  this  block  that  the  pallet  may  be  pressed  on 
them  more  readily. 

Lettering  box.  The  iron  box  in  which  type  are 
screwed  up  preparatory  to  lettering.  To  the  box 
is  attached  a  handle,  the  whole  forming  a  pallet. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       145 

Lettering  pallet.     See  Pallet. 

Levant  morocco.  Originally  made  in  the  Levant 
from  the  skins  of  Angora  goats.  A  superior  quality 
of  morocco,  having  a  large  and  prominent  grain. 
French  levant  morocco  has  long  held  its  place  as  the 
best  of  all  leathers  "for  bookbinding. 

Limp  binding.  Binding  with  a  thin  and  yielding 
cover.  A  perfectly  limp  leather  book  can  be  rolled 
up  easily. 

Linen.     See  English  linen. 

Linen-finish  buckram.  Polished  buckram  and 
satin-finish  book  cloth.  Manufactured  by  Jos.  Ban- 
croft &  Sons  Co.,  Rockford,  near  Wilmington,  Del. 
(New  York  agent,  Albert  D.  Smith,  35-37  Thomas 
St.,  New  York.)  The  special  features  of  these  cloths, 
in  which  it  is  claimed  they  are  superior,  are  uniform- 
ity of  color,  finish  and  fabric,  wearing  qualities, 
tensile  strength,  and  easy  application  of  decoration, 
ink  or  metal. 

Lining  papers.  The  colored  or  marbled  paper  at 
each  end  of  a  book.  Called  also  End  papers,  which 
see. 

Loose  back.     See  Back,  tight  and  loose. 

Low  buckram.     See  English  linen. 

Lying  press.  The  term  applied  to  the  under  side 
of  the  cutting  press  when  used  for  backing.  Usually 
called  laying  press. 

Maioli  style.  A  style  prior  to  and  contemporary 
with  the  early  (Italian)  examples  of  the  Grolier. 
Generally  composed  of  a  framework  of  shields  or 
medallions,  with  a  design  of  scrollwork  flowing 


146  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

through  it.  Portions  of  the  design  are  usually 
studded  with  gold  dots.  Ornaments  are  of  moresque 
character. 

Marbled  calf.  Calf  so  treated  with  acid  that  it 
bears  some  resemblance  to  marble. 

Marbler.  A  workman  who  marbles  the  edges  of  the 
leaves. 

Marbling.  A  process  of  decorating  sheets  of  paper 
and  edges  of  books  with  variegated  colors  in  irregular 
patterns. 

Millboard.  The  boards  that  are  attached  to  the 
book  to  form  the  covers.  Several  kinds  are  in  use 
now;  the  best  is  made  of  old  naval  cordage. 

Millboard  machine.     See  Board  cutter. 

Mitred.  When  the  lines  in  finishing  intersect 
each  other  at  right  angles  and  are  continued  without 
overrunning  each  other,  they  are  said  to  be  mitred. 

Morocco.  Leather  made  from  goatskins,  tanned 
with  sumac,  originally  made  in  the  Barbary  states, 
but  afterwards  very  largely  in  the  Levant,  and  now- 
produced  in  Europe  and  America  from  skins  imported 
from  Asia  and  Africa.  The  peculiar  qualities  of 
true  morocco  are  great  firmness  of  texture,  with 
flexibility,  and  a  grained  surface,  of  which  there  are 
many  varieties.  This  surface  is  produced  by  a  pro- 
cess which  consists  largely  in  rolling  and  folding, 
called  graining.  True  morocco  is  of  extreme  hard- 
ness, and  makes  the  most  durable  book  bindings; 
it  is  used  also  for  upholstering  seats  and  for  similar 
purposes,  and  to  a  certain  extent  in  shoemaking. 

"  Early  specimens  of  red  morocco,  from  the  six- 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   147 

teenth  to  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  were 
found  in  good  condition,  and  of  all  leathers  noticed 
this  seems  to  be  the  least  affected.  In  the  opinion 
of  the  committee,  most  of  this  leather  has  been 
tanned  with  sumac  or  some  closely  allied  tanning 
material.  Morocco  bindings  earlier  than  1860  were 
generally  found  to  be  in  fairly  good  condition;  but 
morocco  after  that  date  seems  to  be  much  less  reli- 
able, and  in  many  cases  has  become  utterly  rotten." 
— Report  '01. 

Leather  called  morocco,  sometimes  with  a  quali- 
fying adjective,  is  now  made  in  Europe  and  America. 
Much  of  this  is  very  good,  even  when  made,  as  it 
often  is,  from  other  skins  than  those  of  goats.  Even 
the  experts  seem  often  unable  to  distinguish  the 
good  from  the  best.  None  of  it  is  to  be  condemned 
or  approved  because  it  is  or  is  not  made  in  the  Levant, 
or  from  goatskins. 

Morocco.  The  name  given  to  any  imitation, 
often  made  of  sheepskin,  of  the  genuine  morocco. 

Morocco.  For  Bock,  French,  Levant,  Persian, 
Turkey  morocco,  see  the  several  words. 

Morocco  cloth.     See  Imperial  morocco  cloth. 

Mosaic  binding.  A  binding  of  leather  decorated 
with  designs  made  in  whole  or  in  part  by  inlaying 
pieces  of  leather  or  other  material  of  different  colors. 
The  designs  are  usually  outlined  with  gold. 

Mottled  calf.  A  light  brown  calf  bookbinding, 
made  to  look  mottled  by  treatment  with  acid. 

Niger  goatskin.  Brought  from  Africa  by  the  Royal 
Niger  Company.  A  native  production.  It  has  a 


148  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

very  beautiful  color  and  texture,  with  no  grain.  It 
has  stood  all  the  tests  given  it  without  serious  dete- 
rioration. It  does  not  keep  clean  under  handling  as 
well  as  a  good  coarse-grained  morocco.  Especially 
recommended  by  the  committee  appointed  to  inves- 
tigate leather  by  the  Society  of  Arts,  of  England. 

Octavo.  A  sheet  of  paper  folded  into  eight  leaves, 
being,  when  folded,  about  8^x5 J  inches;  usually 
written  8vo. 

Off -set.  The  impression  made  by  print  against 
the  opposite  page,  when  a  book  has  been  rolled  or 
beaten  before  the  ink  is  dried;  also  called  Set-off. 

Opened  edges.     See  Edges  opened. 

Out  of  boards.  When  a  volume  is  cut  before  the 
boards  are  affixed  it  is  done  "  out  of  boards."  Nearly 
all  work  is  now  done  out  of  boards. 

Overcasting.  Sewing  the  leaves  or  signatures  of 
a  book  together  over  and  over.  Usually  done  only 
when  the  book  consists  of  single  leaves  or  plates; 
but  is  quite  commonly  employed  now  in  rebinding 
books,  especially  on  the  last  two  or  three  signatures 
front  and  back.  Also  called  whip-stitching.  Prob- 
ably 90  per  cent,  of  the  books  published  today  will 
stand  wear  better  if  they  are  properly  overcast 
than  if  they  are  sewed  in  the  ordinary  way. 

Pallet.  Name  given  to  the  tool  used  in  gilding 
upon  the  bands;  sometimes  applied  to  the  steel  box, 
with  a  handle,  in  which  letters  are  fastened  when 
they  are  pressed  upon  the  back. 

Panel.  The  space  between  bands;  also  applied 
to  beveled  and  sunk  sides. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       149 

Paneling.     The     sides    of    books    are    sometimes 
ornamented   with    sunken    panels.     Paneled    covers 


Lettering  Pallet 

are  usually  made  of  wood  and  covered  with  leather, 
though  sometimes  a  paneled  effect  is  produced  on 
cardboards  by  heavy  pressure. 

Papering  up.  Covering  the  leaves  of  a  volume  to 
protect  them  while  the  volume  is  being  finished. 
This  is  often  done  in  fine  binding,  especially  after 
edges  have  been  gilded. 

Paring.  Reducing  the  edges  of  the  leather  by 
cutting  them  down  to  form  a  gradual  slope.  In 
large  binderies  now  done  by  a  machine. 

Paring  knife.     The  knife  used  for  paring. 


150  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Pastewash.     A  thin  dilution  of  paste  in  water. 

Payne,  Roger,  style.  The  ornaments  of  this  style 
are  easily  identified,  being  free  and  flowing  in  stem 
and  flower;  whereas  before  Payne's  time  they  had  been 
stiff  and  formal.  The  honeysuckle  is  a  customary 
ornament.  The  impressions  of  the  tools  are  usually 
studded  round  with  gold  dots,  whether  used  in  bor- 
ders, corners,  or  centerpieces.  The  style  is  well 
suited  for  early  nineteenth  century  literature,  espe- 
cially poetry. 

Pebble  grained.     See  Grain. 

Persian  morocco.  A  kind  of  morocco  leather 
much  used  in  bookbinding.  It  may  be  finished  by 
graining  in  several  styles.  It  is  mostly  made  in 
Germany,  from  the  skins  of  hairy  sheep  called  Per- 
sian goats,  whence  its  name  is  derived. 

"  East  Indian  or  '  Persian '  tanned  sheep  and  goat- 
skins, called  'Persian  morocco'  or  'Persian  sheep,' 
now  used  largely  for  cheap  bookbinding  purposes,  are 
extremely  bad.  Books  bound  in  these  materials  have 
been  found  to  show  decay  in  less  than  1 2  months  and 
probably  no  book  bound  in  these  leathers, exposed  on 
a  shelf  to  sunlight  or  gas  fumes,  can  be  expected  to 
last  more  than  five  or  six  years." — Report  '01. 

Petits  Fers.  Small  hand  tools  used  in  finishing, 
as  distinguished  from  the  stamps  or  blocks  worked 
in  a  press. 

Pieced.  When  the  space  between  bands,  where 
lettering  or  title  is  placed,  has  fastened  to  it  a  piece 
of  leather  different  from  the  back,  it  is  said  to  be 
pieced  or  titled. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.      151 

Pigskin.  Leather  made  of  pigskin.  It  is  very 
tough  and  if  constantly  handled  wears  well. 

"  Modern  pigskin,  if  genuine,  seems  to  last  very 
well  in  some  colors  and  in  an  undyed  condition ; 
but  some  colored  pigskin  bindings  have  utterly  per- 
ished. Pigskin  is  naturally  hard  and  rather  stiff 
leather  and  is  suitable  for  large  books  rather  than 
small,  and  for  books  which  are  much  handled/'  "If 
submitted  to  severe  softening  processes  in  manu- 
facture its  durability  is  very  small." — Report  '01, 

Chivers  has  used  a  soft,  thin  pigskin  with  great 
success,  here  and  in  England. 

Plate.  An  illustration  printed  from  a  plate. 
Term  often  incorrectly  applied  to  illustrations  printed 
from  wood-cuts.  Also,  any  full  page  illustration 
printed  on  paper  different  from  that  of  the  rest  of  the 
book  is  usually  called  a  "plate." 

Plough.  An  instrument  used  in  cutting  the  edges 
of  books  and  boards. 

Pointille  style.  The  dotted  style  of  ornament  of 
Le  Gascon. 

Points.  Small  holes  made  in  the  sheets  by  the 
printer  which  serve  as  guides  in  registering  and 
folding. 


Flat  Polisher 

Polisher.     A  steel  instrument   for   giving  a   gloss 
to  leather  after  finishing. 


152  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Powder.     See  Seme. 

Press.  There  are  several  kinds  of  presses,  viz.: 
plough  and  press,  for  cutting,  and  standing,  stamp- 
ing, embossing,  gilding,  and  finishing  presses. 

Press  pin.  An  iron  bar  used  for  turning  the  screws 
of  presses. 

Pressing  boards.  Boards  put  between  books  when 
they  are  pressed.  They  are  usually  made  of  care- 
fully seasoned  wood,  and  have  a  heavy  strip  of  brass 
about  their  edges,  which  projects  a  little  above  the 
board's  surface.  Books  are  laid  on  the  boards  with 
their  backs  projecting  over  this  band  enough  to  bring 
the  latter  exactly  into  the  groove  of  the  joint.  An- 
other board  is  laid  on  these  books  in  the  same  posi- 
tion as  the  first,  and  so  on.  All  are  then  pressed. 

Pressing  plates.  Thin  plates  of  metal,  japanned 
or  nickeled,  used  to  give  a  finish  or  polish  to  the 
leather  on  a  book  by  placing  them  next  to  the  leather 
and  then  subjecting  book  and  plates  to  heavy  pres- 
sure. 

Publishers'  bindings.     See  Case  bindings. 

Quarto.  When  a  sheet  is  folded  into  four  leaves, 
the  size  of  the  folded  piece  being  about  nx8j 
inches;  usually  written,  4to. 

Quire.  Twenty-four  sheets.  When  the  sheets 
of  a  pamphlet  are  folded  and  set  into  each  other  in 
one  section,  they  are  quired. 

Recto.     The  right  page;  verso  is  the  left  page. 

Red  edges.     See  Edges  red. 

Register.  When  the  print  on  one  side  of  a  leaf 
falls  exactly  over  that  on  the  other  it  is  said  to 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       153 


register.      Also,    a  ribbon    placed   in    a  book  as    a 
marker. 

Renaissance  ornaments.     See  Derome  style. 

Roan.  Leather  made  of  sheepskin  and  not  split. 
See  Sheepskin. 

Rolled  edges.     See  Edges  rolled. 

Rolling  machine.  A  machine  introduced  to  save 
the  labor  of  beating.  By  it  the  sheets  are  passed 
between  two  revolving  cylinders.  Used  in  pub- 
lishers' binding. 

Rolls.  Wheels  of  brass,  cut  to  any  pattern,  for 
impressing  gold  leaf  on  leather. 

Roulette  border.  A  border  design  produced  by  a 
wheel  on  the  circumference  of  which  is  engraved  a 
pattern  that  reproduces  itself  as  the  wheel  is  revolved. 

Rounded  edges.  See  Edges 
rounded. 

Rounding.  The  process  by 
which  the  back  of  a  book  is 
made  round. 

Rounding  hammer.  A  heavy, 
round-faced  hammer  used  in 
rounding  books. 

Roundlet.  A  small  circle  in 
gold. 

Roxburgh   binding.      A  bind- 
ing with  a  rather  narrow  leather 
back,    without    bands,  simply    lettered,    paper  sides 
and  no  leather  corners. 

Rubbing  or  rub-off.  The  name  usually  given  to 
the  copy  of  the  lettering  on  the  back  of  the  book, 


Rounding  Hammer. 


154  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

made  by  holding  thin  paper  tightly  over  the  back 
and  rubbing  the  paper  with  a  heel-ball  or  a  piece 
of  plumbago. 

Run  up.  When  a  back  has  a  fillet  run  from  top 
to  bottom  without  being  mitred  at  each  band,  it  is 
said  to  be  run  up. 

Russia  leather.  A  fine  leather  prepared  in  Russia, 
and  imitated  elsewhere,  by  very  careful  willowbark 
tanning,  dyeing  with  sandalwood,  and  soaking  in 
birch  oil.  It  is  of  a  brownish  red  color,  and  has  a 
peculiar  and  characteristic  odor.  The  genuine  is 
not  often  used  in  binding;  it  is  not  as  strong  as 
cowhide. 

"In  nearly  all  samples  of  Russia  leather  a  very 
violent  form  of  red  decay  was  noticed.  In  many 
cases  the  leather  was  found  to  be  absolutely  rotten 
in  all  parts  exposed  to  light  and  air,  so  that  on  the 
very  slightest  rubbing  with  a  blunt  instrument  the 
leather  fell  into  fine  dust." — Report  '01. 

Saddle -stitched.  A  pamphlet  or  book  of  one  sig- 
nature only  sewed  with  thread  or  fastened  with  wire 
staples  along  the  back  is  said  to  be  saddle-stitched. 

Sawing  in.  Making  grooves  in  the  back  of  a  book 
with  a  saw  to  receive  strings  or  bands. 

Seal  grain.     See  Grain. 

Section.     A  folded  sheet.     See   Signature. 

Seme,  or  Semis,  or  Powder.  Ornamentation  in 
which  a  deyice  is  repeated  at  regular  intervals. 

Set-off.     See  Off-set. 

Setting  the  head.  Covering  the  headband  neatly 
with  the  leather  to  form  over  it  a  kind  of  cap. 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   155 

Sewer.  The  person  who  sews  together  on  a  sew- 
ing bench  the  sheets,  called  when  folded  sections  or 
signatures,  to  form  a  book. 

Sewing  bench.  A  board  from  one  side  of  which 
rise  two  sticks  across  which  is  a  bar,  which  can  be 
moved  up  and  down  and  fixed  in  any  desired  posi- 


Sewing  Bench 


tion.  Strings,  bands,  or  tapes  are  stretched  verti- 
cally between  the  edge  of  the  board  and  the  cross  bar ; 
against  these  the  signatures  of  a  book  are  succes- 
sively placed  and  to  them  sewed. 

Sheepskin.  The  commonest  leather  used  for  bind- 
ing. When  unsplit  it  is  called  Roan.  When  split 
in  two,  the  upper  half  is  called  Skiver,  the  under 
or  fleshy  half  a  Flesher.  This  leather  is  easy  to  work, 
takes  gold  lettering  easily,  and  looks  fairly  well  on 
a  book.  But  it  is  not  strong,  and  most  kinds  dry 
out  and  break  within  three  to  five  years,  even  if 
much  handled.  The  leather  made  from  the  skin 
of  the  sheep  is  not  all  alike.  The  remark  already 


156  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

made,  that  a  given  piece  of  leather  is  not  to  be 
condemned  for  its  name,  applies  to  all  the  other 
leathers  in  this  list.  The  skin  from  some  mountain- 
bred  sheep,  for  example,  if  well  tanned,  makes  a 
good  leather. 

"Sheepskin  bindings  of  the  early  part  of  the 
century  are  many  of  them  still  in  good  condition. 
Sheepskin,  in  a  fairly  natural  state,  seems  to  keep 
its  flexibility,  but  it  is  very  easily  damaged  by  fric- 
tion. Since  about  1860  sheepskin  as  sheepskin  is 
hardly  to  be  found.  We  have  instead  sheepskins 
grained  in  imitation  of  various  other  leathers,  and 
these  imitation  grained  leathers  are,  generally  speak- 
ing, in  a  worse  condition  than  any  others,  excepting, 
perhaps,  some  of  the  very  thin  calf  bin  dings.  "- 
Report  '01. 

Shelf -back.  The  back  of  the  book,  showing  the 
title,  bands,  decorations,  etc. 

Signature.  The  letter  or  figure  under  the  foot- 
line  of  the  first  page  of  each  sheet  or  signature  to 
indicate  the  order  of  its  arrangement  in  the  book; 
often  applied  to  the  sheet  itself. 

Sixteenmo.  A  sheet  folded  into  sixteen  leaves, 
about  4x6  inches  when  folded.  Usually  written  i6mo. 

Size.  A  preparation  of  pastewash  used  in  finishing 
and  gilding. 

Sizes  of  books.     See  folio,  quarto,  octavo,  etc. 

Skiver.  The  outer  hair  or  grain  side  of  sheep- 
skin which  has  been  split.  It  is  commonly  the 
thinner  of  the  two  parts,  as  when  the  inner  is  pre- 
pared for  chamois.  It  usually  looks  well,  and  is 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   157 

easily  worked,  but  is  not  strong.  Much  used  for 
bindings.  See  Sheepskin. 

Slips.  The  ends  of  the  band,  twine  or  tape  on 
which  the  book  is  sewn  that  project  beyond  the  back 
after  it  is  sewed. 

Smooth  calf.     Plain  or  undecorated  calf. 

Split  leather.  Leather  split  by  machine.  Two 
or  more  pieces  or  splits  are  thus  obtained  either  of 
which  may  be  used.  The  inner  layer  is  usually  of 
inferior  quality.  Sometimes  leather  is  split  simply 
to  secure  uniformity  of  thickness  in  the  outer  parts. 

Sprinkled  calf.  Calf  so  treated  with  acid  that  it 
looks  as  if  it  had  been  sprinkled  with  a  dye. 

Sprinkled-  edges.  Cut  edges  of  books  sprinkled 
with  color,  that  the  marks  made  by  handling  may  be 
less  evident. 

Squares.  The  portion  of  the  boards  that  project 
beyond  the  edge  of  the  leaves  of  the  book. 

Stabbed.  A  pamphlet  or  book  of  one  or  more  sig- 
natures held  together  by  thread  or  wire  staples 
driven  vertically  through  near  the  back  edge  is  said 
to  be  stabbed. 

Stabbing.  The  operation  of  piercing  the  boards 
with  a  bodkin  for  the  slips  to  pass  through.  Also 
the  piercing  of  pamphlets  for  stitching.  Also  the 
process  of  fastening  pamphlets  together  with  staples 
of  fine  wire,  done  on  a  machine. 

Stamping  press.     See  Blocking  press. 

Stamps.  The  brass  tools  used  in  finishing  to 
impress  figures  upon  the  leather;  they  are  distin- 
guished as  hand  stamps  and  stamps  for  the  press. 


BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 


Standing  press.     A  large  press  with  screw  for  press- 
ing many  books  at  once. 


Standing  Press  of  Wood  and  Iron 


Start.  When,  after  cutting,  one  or  more  sections 
of  the  book  come  forward,  making  the  fore  edge 
irregular,  they  are  said  to  have  started. 


TECHNICAL  TERMS,  LEATHERS,  TOOLS,  ETC.   159 

Steamboating.  Cutting  books  out  of  boards,  a 
number  being  cut  at  the  same  time. 

Straight  edge.     A  flat  ruler. 

Super.  A  thin,  loosely  woven  cotton  cloth,  glued 
onto  the  backs  of  books  to  help  to  hold  the  signa- 
tures together  and,  "by  extending  over  to  the  inside 
of  the  cover,  to  hold  book  and  cover  together.  In 
publishers'  binding  this  is  usually  all  that  holds  a 
book  in  its  case.  It  is  thin  and  loosely  woven  that 
it  may  be  easily  glued  down  and  starched  that  it 
may  be  easily  handled.  Its  place  is  taken  in  good 
binding  by  fine  muslin  or  jaconet. 

T.  E.  G.     Top-edge  gilt. 

Tacky.  Sticky;  spoken  often  of  glue  after  it  has 
set,  but  before  it  is  quite  dry. 

Tail.     See  Head  and  tail. 

Tape.  Cotton  tape  on  which  many  books  are 
best  sewn.  It  should  be  stout  but  flexible. 

Thread.  The  thread  with  which  books  are  sewn 
is  usually  made  of  linen,  unbleached.  It  comes  in 
several  sizes.  If  of  good  quality,  say  Hayes's  Stand- 
ard linen,  it  costs  about  $1.25  per  pound  for  No.  18 
2 -cord. 

Silk  thread  is  sometimes  used  in  extra  binding  and 
on  very  thick  books. 

In  machine  sewing  cotton  thread  is  used  and  wears 
well. 

Thirty -two  mo.  A  sheet  of  paper  folded  into  thirty- 
two  leaves;  usually  written  3 2 mo. 

Three-quarters  bound.     See  Half-bound. 

Tight  back.     See  Back,  tight  and  loose. 


l6o  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Title.  The  space  between  the  bands  upon  which 
the  title  is  lettered. 

Titled.     See  Pieced. 

Tools.  Brass  stamps  used  for  impressing  gold 
leaf  on  leather.  Applied  particularly  to  the  hand 
stamps  and  tools  used  in  finishing. 

Top  cover.  The  upper  or  front  cover  of  a  book 
in  binding. 

Top  edges.  The  head  or  top  of  a  book,  in  contra- 
distinction to  fore-edge  or  tail. 

Top  gilt.  Used  in  speaking  of  a  book  of  which  the 
top  edge  only  is  gilded. 

Top  side.  The  front  side  of  the  cover  of  a  book 
in  binding. 

Tree  calf.  A  bright  brown  calf  stained  by  acids 
in  conventional  imitation  of  the  trunk  and  branches 
of  a  tree. 

Trimmed.  The  edges  of  a  book  are  said  to  be 
trimmed  when  the  edges  of  the  larger  or  projecting 
leaves  only  have  been  cut. 

Trindle.  A  strip  of  thin  wood  or  iron  used  to  take 
the  round  out  of  a  book  when  it  is  cut. 

Tub.  The  stand  which  supports  the  lying  press. 
Originally  an  actual  tub  to  catch  the  shavings. 

Turkey  morocco.  Made  of  goatskins  from  Turkey. 
It  is  very  strong,  durable  leather;  expensive,  but 
worth  the  money. 

Turning  up.  The  process  of  taking  the  round  out 
of  a  book  when  the  edge  is  cut.  All  books  that  are 
cut  in  boards  have  a  pair  of  trindles  thrust  between  the 
boards  and  across  the  back  to  assist  in  this  operation. 


TECHNICAL    TERMS,    LEATHERS,    TOOLS,    ETC.       l6l 

Tying  up.  Tying  a  volume  with  heavy  twine 
after  the  leather  cover  has  been  drawn  on  to  make 
the  leather  adhere  to  the  sides  of  the  bands;  also  to 
help  in  setting  the  head. 

Uncut.  A  book  is  said  to  be  uncut  when  the 
edges  of  the  paper  have  not  been  cut  with  the  cut- 
ting machine. 

Unopened.  A  book  is  said  to  be  unopened  if  the 
bolts  of  the  sheets  have  not  been  cut. 

Vellum.     See  Art  vellum. 

Verso.     The  left  page. 

Waste,  or  Waste  leaves.  Part  of  the  end  papers 
and  the  blank  leaves  between  the  colored  end  papers 
and  the  book  proper;  should  be  part  of  the  same  lot 
of  paper  with  which  the  book  is  printed.  One  of  the 
waste  leaves  is  often  pasted  to  the  loose  half  of  the 
lining  paper  or  end  sheet,  thus  forming  a  doubled 
fly-leaf. 

Waste  papers.     See  End  papers. 

Waterproof  sheets.  Sheets  of  celluloid  or  water- 
proof cardboard  sometimes  laid  in  or  between  books 
when  pressing. 

Whatman  paper.  A  high  grade  quality  of  English 
hand-made  paper,  both  laid  and  wove,  chiefly  used 
for  drawing. 

Whipping.     Same  as  whipstitching  or  overcasting. 

Whipstitching.     See  Overcasting. 

White  edges.  Simply  cut,  without  being  gilded 
or  colored. 

Whole  binding.  When  the  leather  covers  the  back 
and  sides  of  a  volume. 


1 62  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

Wire  staples.  Fine  wire  staples  used  by  certain 
book-sewing  machines  in  the  place  of  thread  for 
holding  the  sections  to  a  piece  of  muslin.  Also  the 
staples  used  in  place  of  thread  in  saddle-stitching 
a  pamphlet  of  one  signature  on  a  machine.  Used 
also  in  holding  a  book  of  several  signatures  together, 
the  staple  being  driven  through  all  the  signatures 
close  to  their  back  edges. 

Witness.  When  a  book  has  been  trimmed,  leav- 
ing some  of  the  leaves  still  rough,  the  latter  are  a 
witness  as  to  the  original  size  of  the  sheet  and  prove 
that  it  has  not  been  cut  down. 

Wove  paper.  That  which  does  not  show  water- 
marked lines  running  across  it;  distinguished  from 
laid  paper. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

Makers    and  Dealers  in  Bookbinders'  Materials, 
Tools  and  Machinery 

Jos.  Bancroft  &  Sons,  manufacturers,  Rockford,  Wil- 
mington, Del.  Book  cloths.  Albert  D.  Smith,  35  and  37 
Thomas  St.,  New  York,  New  York  agent. 

John  Campbell  &  Co.,  34  Ferry  St.,  New- York.  Leathers, 
book  cloths,  marble  papers,  etc. 

Cedric  Chivers,  9 1 1  Atlantic  A ve.,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  and  Bath, 
England.  Binder  from  publishers'  sheets,  rebinder,  art  binder. 

Crawley  Book  Machinery  Company,  Newport,  Ky.  Book- 
binders' machinery. 

Louis  De  Jonge  &  Co.,  71-73  Duane  St.,  New  York. 
Leather,  book  cloths,  fancy  paper,  bookbinders'  supplies 
and  machinery. 

Dennison's  Manufacturing  Co.,  15  John  St.,  New  York. 
Gummed  labels  and  other  office  supplies. 

Miss  Edith  Diehl,  131  E.  3ist  St.,  New  York.  Leather 
and  binding  supplies. 

Gane  Bros.,  81  Duane  St.,  New  York.  Leathers,  cloths, 
boards,  bookbinders'  supplies  and  machinery  of  every 
description. 

Thos.  Garner  &  Co.,  181  William  St.,  and  22  Spruce  St.,  New 
York.  Manufacturers  of  leathers  and  bookbinders'  supplies. 

Gaylord  Bros.,  117  Emerson  Building,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 
Book  repair  material  of  many  kinds. 

The  H.  Griffin  &  Sons  Company,  75-77  Duane  St.,  New 
York.  Leathers,  book  cloths,  marble  papers  and  book- 
binders' materials  of  every  description. 

The  Hamilton  Manufacturing  Company,  main  office  and 
factory,  Two  Rivers,  Wis.;  eastern  office  and  warehouse, 
Middletown,  N.  Y.  Bookbinders'  furniture  and  supplies. 


164  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

C.  B.  Hewitt  &  Brothers,  48  Beekman  St.,  New  York. 
Paper,  boards  and  glue. 

The  W.  O.  Hickok  Manufacturing  Co.,  Harrisburg,  Pa. 
Bookbinders'  machinery. 

Holliston  Mills,  Norwood,  Mass.,  and  67  Fifth  Ave.,  New 
York.  Book  cloths. 

Hoole  Machine  and  Engraving  Works,  29  Prospect  St., 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  Manufacturers  of  bookbinders'  tools  and 
machinery. 

Interlaken  Mills,  in  Duane  St.,  New  York.     Book  cloths. 

Japan  Paper  Co.,  34  Union  Square,  E.,  New  York.  Hand- 
made Japanese  window  or  Shoji  paper  for  repairing  leaves, 
also  called  Japanese  mending  tissue. 

Keratol  Company,  corner  South  and  Van  Buren  Sts., 
Newark,  N.  J.  Manufacturers  of  imitation  leathers. 

Latham  Machinery  Company,  197-201  S.  Canal  St., 
Chicago,  111.  Manufacturers  of  bookbinders'  and  printers' 
machinery. 

Lindenmeyr  &  Sons,  20  Beekman  St.,  New  York.     Paper. 

J.  W.  O'Bannon  Company,  74  Duane  St.,  New  York. 
Dealers  in  all  bookbinders'  supplies. 

Oswego  Machine  Works,  Oswego,  N.  Y.  Bookbinders' 
machinery. 

C.  &  W.  Pyle  Company,  4th  and  Van  Buren  Sts.,  Wilming- 
ton, Del.  Bookbinders'  material. 

Schulte  &  Co.,  51  N.  7th  St.,  Philadelphia,  Pa.  Leather 
and  book  cloths. 

T.  W.  &  C.  B.  Sheridan,  56  Duane  St.,  New  York.  Book- 
binders' machinery. 

J.  L.  Shoemaker  &  Co.,  i5th  and  S.  6th  Sts.,  Philadelphia, 
Pa.  Machinery,  paper,  leather,  etc. 

Standard  Machine  Co.,  Mystic,  Conn.  Bookbinders' 
machinery. 

Stark  &  Selig,  458  W.  Broadway,  New  York.  Book 
stamps  and  embossing  dies. 

F.  Wesel  Manufacturing  Company,  10  Spruce  St.,  New 
York.  Bookbinders'  machinery. 


CHAPTER  XX 

A  Few  of  the  Best  Books  on  Bookbinding,  Paper 
and  Leather 

Those  marked  (S)  will  be  found  the  most  useful  books 
for  a  small  library. 

Adam,  Paul.  Practical  bookbinding.  Van  Nostrand. 
New  York.  1903.  $1.25.  This  is  a  translation  from  the 
German,  the  author  being  the  director  of  the  Diisseldorf 
Technical  School  of  Artistic  and  Practical  Bookbinding.  It 
treats  mainly  of  the  practical  side  of  binding  and  describes 
with  considerable  detail  the  materials  used  in  the  work.  It 
is  illustrated  mostly  with  outline  cuts  which  aid  the  reader 
or  student  to  understand  the  several  methods  and  processes. 

Brassington,  W.  S.  History  of  the  art  of  bookbinding. 
Stock.  London.  1894.  $10.00.  Interesting  illustrations 
of  ancient  records  before  book  making.  Notices  of  printers, 
collectors,  binders  and  famous  books.  Appendix  C  gives 
samples  and  brief  descriptions  of  oriental  forms  of  binding. 
Very  good  general  work. 

Butler,  J.  W.  The  story  of  paper  making.  Butler  Paper 
Co.  Chicago.  1901.  $1.25.  An  interesting  account  of 
paper  making  from  its  earliest  known  record  down  to  the 
present  time. 

(S)  Chivers,  Cedric.  Improvements  in  the  binding  of 
books.  Cedric  Chivers.  Bath,  England.  Free.  Descrip- 
tion of  the  methods  used  by  Chivers  in  his  own  bindery. 
The  writer  has  a  high  reputation,  and  probably  binds  books 
more  satisfactorily  for  libraries  than  any  binder  in  the  world 
today. 

(S)  Cockerell,  Douglas.  Bookbinding  and  the  care  of 
books.  Appleton.  New  York.  1902.  $1.25  net.  Text- 

165 


l66  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

book  of  workshop  practice  from  personal  experience  and 
critical  examination  of  methods  current  in  shops.  It  sup- 
plements workshop  training  and  is  a  help  in  the  selection 
of  sound  bindings.  The  best  single  book  for  the  librarian 
who  wishes  to  know  about  the  craft  of  binding.  Does  not 
treat  the  subject  of  strong  rebinding  for  the  public  library. 

Cockerell,  Douglas.  A  note  on  bookbinding  .  .  .  with 
extracts  from  the  special  report  of  the  Society  of  Arts  on 
leather  for  bookbinding.  London.  Issued  by  W.  H.  Smith 
&  Son,  for  their  bookbinding  department.  1904.  Price 
i  penny. 

Crane,  W.  J.  E.  Bookbinding  for  amateurs.  L.  Upcott 
Gill,  London,  no  date.  Price  $0.65.  This  gives  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  various  tools  and  appliances  required  and  minute 
instruction  for  their  use. 

Cundall,  Joseph,  ed.  On  bookbindings  ancient  and 
modern.  Bell,  London,  1881.  Price  $12.00.  An  excellent 
history  of  the  art  from  earliest  times.  Contains  a  chrono- 
logical list  or  table  of  famous  bookbinders,  with  their  nation- 
alities, dates  of  birth  and  death. 

Fletcher,  W.  Y.,  F.  S.  A.  Bookbinding  in  France. 
Macmillan  &  Co.,  New  York,  1894.  $0.75.  An  accurate 
brief  account  of  the  history  and  growth  of  the  art  in  France. 
Profusely  illustrated,  with  cuts  in  the  text  and  with  fac- 
similes in  color. 

(S)  Gane  Brothers.  Bookbinders'  stock.  Free.  Gane. 
8 1  Duane  St.,  New  York.  A  trade  catalogue,  giving  cuts 
of  articles  as  well  as  prices. 

Growoll,  A.  The  profession  of  bookselling,  av.  Pub- 
lisher's Weekly.  New  York.  1895.  $4.00  net.  Contains 
an  excellent  article  on  bookbinding  with  descriptions  of 
leather  and  other  cover  material,  cost  and  other  details.  A 
list  of  authorities  is  given  and  a  description  of  technical 
terms. 

Hasluck,  Paul  N.,  ed.  Bookbinding.  David  Mcl£ay, 
Philadelphia,  1903.  $0.50.  A  practical  text-book  with 
numerous  engravings  and  diagrams. 


BEST    BOOKS    ON    BINDING  167 

Home,  Herbert  P.  The  binding  of  books.  Scribner, 
New  York,  1894.  $2.00.  Shows  how  good  decoration  on 
bindings  can  be  made  only  by  those  who  understand  design. 

(S)  Hulme,  Parker  and  others.  Leather  for  libraries. 
Published  for  the  Sound  leather  committee  of  the  Library 
Association,  England,  by  the  Library  Supply  Company. 
London.  1905.  Price  $0.40.  A  summary  of  the  report 
of  the  committee  of  the  Society  of  Arts,  brought  down  to 
date,  and  with  helpful  notes  added.  Includes  small  samples 
of  leather. 

Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  4  nos.  20  cents  each. 
London.  Sept.  n,  18,  25,  Oct.  2,  1903.  Four  lectures 
delivered  by  Julius  Hiibner,  director  of  the  paper  making 
department,  at  the  Municipal  School  of  Technology,  Man- 
chester, England,  giving  a  practical  treatise  on  paper  making. 
Also  issued  as  "Cantor  Lectures"  in  one  pamphlet,  same 
society.  25  cents. 

Journal  of  the  Society  of  Arts.  20  cents.  London. 
July  5,  1901.  Report  of  a  committee  on  leather  for  book- 
binding. The  decay  of  leather,  a  subject  which  has  attracted 
a  great  deal  of  attention  and  interest  among  librarians  and 
collectors.  The  best  thing  for  librarians  ever  published  on 
leather. 

Matthews,  Brander.  Bookbinding,  old  and  new.  Mac- 
millan,  New  York,  1895.  $3.00.  Notes  of  a  book-lover, 
with  an  account  of  the  Grolier  Club  of  New  York. 

Nicholson,  James  B.  Manual  of  the  art  of  bookbinding. 
Baird,  Philadelphia,  1856.  $1.00.  Instructions  in  the 
different  branches  of  forwarding,  gilding,  finishing  and 
marbling. 

(S)   Pearce,    W.     B.     Practical     bookbinding.       Marshall . 
&  Co.,  London,  no  date.     25  cents.     A  text-book  designed 
to  give  sufficient  help  to  enable  handy  persons  to  bind  their 
own  books.     Illustrated  with  photographs  and  drawings. 

Prideaux,  S.  T.  An  historical  sketch  of  bookbinding. 
Lawrence.  London.  1893.  $i;5o  net.  Intended  as  a 
help  in  the  first  steps.  A  chronological  table  of  French  and 


l68  BOOKBINDING    FOR    LIBRARIES 

English  sovereigns  is  added  with  a  bibliography  and  expla- 
nation of  technical  terms.  An  appendix  treats  of  ornamen- 
tation. 

Public  Libraries,  June,  1904.     Binding  number. 

Public  Libraries,  June,  1906.     Binding  number. 

Report  of  the  committee  on  leather  for  bookbinding. 
Edited  by  Cobham  and  Wood  for  the  Society  of  Arts.  Lon- 
don. Bell.  1905.  $2.80.  Contains  some  material  on  dye- 
ing leather  not  in  the  original  report;  has  numerous  illustra- 
tions, 12  samples  of  leather,  well  printed,  bound  in  cloth. 

Society  of  Arts — Committee  on  the  deterioration  of  paper. 
Report  .  .  .  with  two  appendixes:  i,  abstracts  of 
paper  on  German  official  tests,  1885-96;  2,  correspondence. 
London.  1898.  25  cents. 

Zaehnsdorf,  J.  W.  The  art  of  bookbinding.  $1.25. 
Bell.  London.  1880.  $1.25.  Step  by  step  an  imaginary 
book  is  bound,  as  in  an  "extra  shop,"  to  show  the  amateur 
how  to  bind  his  own  book,  or  how  to  know  a  good  binding 
when  purchasing.  Illustrations  of  machinery  used  are 
given  and  practical  receipts. 

Zahn,  Otto.  On  art  binding.  S.  C.  Toof  &  Co.,  Mem- 
phis, 1904.  $1.50.  Illustrated  with  half-tone  pictures  of 
fine  bindings  by  the  author. 


Index 


Acids  used  in  dyeing,  Effects 

of,  76,  95 
Aldine  style,  119 
Ail-along  sewing,  119 
American  Russia  leather,  154 
Antique,  124 
Arabesque  style,  119 
Art  canvas,  41,  119 
Art  vellum,  120 
Azure  tools,  120 
Azured  style,  121 

Backing,  33,  121 

Backing  boards,  121 

Backing  hammer,  122 

Backing  machine,  122 

Backing  press,  122 

Backs,  121 

Backs, "loose,  repairing,  81 

Backs,  material  for,  41 

Band  driver,  122 

Band  nippers,  122 

Bands,  122 

Bead,  123 

Beating  hammer,  124 

Beating  stone,  124 

Beveled  boards,  124 

Bibliography  of  bookbinding, 

.165 

Binder,  124 

Binder's  workshop  in  1771,  vi 
Binders  for  magazines,  61 
Bindery,  equipment,  114 
Binding,  flexible,  135 
Binding   from   publishers' 

sheets,  20 
Binding  materials  for  backs, 


Binding  materials  for  sides, 

42 

Binding,  mosaic,  147 
Binding  records,  no 
Bindings,  broken,  124 
Bindings,  broken,  mending,  80 
Bleed,  124 
Blind  tooling,  124 
Blocking  press,  125 
Board  papers,  125 
Board  shears,  125 
Boards,  47,  125 
Boards,  binding  in,  142 
Boards,  broken,  repairing,  84 
Boards,  pressing,  152 
Bock  morocco,  126 
Bodkin,  126 
Bolt,  126 
Book  covers,  machine-made, 

26 
Book    list    on    bookbinding, 

165 

Bookbinding  terms,  119 

Bosses,  126 

Boston  binder,  65 

Broken  bindings,  mending, 
80 

Broken  boards,  replacing,  84 

Brushes,  86 

Buchan  binder,  66 

Buckram,  126 

Buckram,  Linen  finish,  145 

Buffing,  126 

Buffingette,  see  Keratol,  143 

Bureau  of  standards,  speci- 
fications for  book  cloth,  43 

Burnishers,  127 

Burnishing,  126 


169 


i  yo 


INDEX 


Calf  lined,  127 
Calf,  marbled,  146 
Calf,  sprinkled,  157 
Calf,  Tree-,  160 
Calfskin,  127 
Cancels,  127 
Canvas,  132 
Caps,  127 
Case  bindings,  128 
Catchword,  128 
Center  tools,  128 
Chivers  binder,  66 
Circuit  edges,  128 
Clasp,  128 
Cleaning  books,  74 
Clearing  out,  128 
Cleveland  binder,  62,  67 
Clip  binders,  63 
Cloth,  86 
Cloth  boards,  128 
Cloth,  English  Imperial  Mo- 
rocco, 41,  141 
Cloth,  standards,  43 
Cobden- Sanderson  style,  128 
Collating,  128 
Combs,  129 
Copying  press,  87 
Corners,  129 
Cost  of  binding,  20 
Covering  (repairing),  82 
Covers,  loose,  reattaching,  82 
Cowhide,  129 
Cowskin,  41 
Creaser,  129 
Cropped  binding,  129 
Crushed  leather,  129 
Crushed  levant,  129 
Cut  flush,  130 
Cutter,  130 

Cutting  boards,  87,  130 
Cutting  machine,  130 
Cutting  press,  130 

Dandy,  130 

Dealers  in  bookbinding  ma- 
terials, 163 


Decay  of  leather,  76,  95 
Deckle  edge,  131 
Dentelle  border,  131 
Derome  style,  132 
Diaper,  132 
Divinity  calf,  132 
Doublure,  132 
Duck,  132 
Dutch  metal,  133 

Eau  de  Javelle,  142 
Edges,  Gaufre,  138 
Edges,  gilt,  138 
Edges,  soiled,  cleaning,  83 
Edges,   treatments    in   bind- 

ipg.  133 

Edition  de  luxe,  133 
Embossed,  133 
End  leaves,  133 
End  papers,  134 
End  papers,  renewal,  80 
End  sheets,  45 
English  linen,  134 
Eve  style,  134 
Extra  binding,  134 

Fanfare  style,   134 
Fillet,  135 
Finishing,  135 
Finishing  press,  135 
Finishing  stove,  135 
Flexible  binding,  135 
Flexible  glue,  135 
Flexible  sewing,  137 
Fly  leaves,  137 
Fly  leaves,  removal,  80 
Folder,  87,  137 
Folio,  137 
Fore-edge,  137 
Fore-edges,  cutting,  83 
Forwarding,  137 
French  guard,  137 
French  joint,  34,  50,   137 
French  morocco,  137 
Full  bound,  138 


INDEX 


171 


Gascon  style,  Le,  138 

Gathering,  138 

Gaufre  edges,  138 

Gauge,  138 

Gilding,  53 

Gilding  press,  138 

Gilt,  138 

Gilt  edges,  138 

Gilt  tops,  138 

Glair,  138 

Glue,  47 

Glue,  flexible,  135 

Glue  pot,  87 

Goatskin,  Niger,  147 

Goffered  edges,  139 

Gold  cushion,  139 

Gold  knife,  139 

Gold  leaf,  139 

Gouge,  139 

Grain  (leather),  139 

Graining,  139 

Grater,  139 

Grease  marks,  removal,  85 

Grolier  style,  139 

Groove,  140 

Ground  glue,  87 

Guard,  French,  137 

Guards,  140 

Guards  for  plates,  48 

Guides,  140 

Guillotine,  140 

Gummed  paper,  87 

Half-bound,  140 
Half-title,  141 
Hand  letters,  141 
Hand-sewing,  45 
Head  and  tail,  141 
Head  cap,  141 
Heel-ball,  141 

Imperial  morocco  cloth,   141 

Ink  stains,  removal,  84 

Inset,  142 

Inside  margins,  142 

Inside  tins,  142 

Italian  style,  119 


'ansen  style,  142 

apanese  mending  paper,  87 
rapanese  mending  tissue,  52 

avelle  water,  142 

ohnston  binder,  65 
roint,  French,  137 
bints,  142 

oints,  repairing,  81 
rustification,  143 

Keratol,  143 
Kettlestitch,  143 
Keys,  143 
Kip  calf,  144 
Klip  binder,  67 
Knife,  87 
Knocking-down  iron,  144 

Labels,  57 

Labels,  renewal,  77 

Laced  in,  144 

Laid  paper,  144 

Law  sheep,  144 

Leather,  93 

Leather,  decay,  76,  95 

Leather,  grain  in,  139 

Leather,  Russia,  154 

Leather,  treatment  with  oil, 
76 

Leatherette,  144 

Le  Gascon  style,  138 

Lettering,  47,  53 

Lettering  block,  144 

Lettering  box,  144 

Lettering  pallet,  148 

Lettering  by  hand,  55 

Lettering  in  white  ink,  56 

Levant  morocco,  145 

Library  binding,  17  and  foil. 

Life  histories  of  library  bind- 
ings, 22 

Limp  binding,  145 

Linen,  English,  134 

Linen-finish  buckram,  145 

Lining  papers,  133,  145 

Loose  backs,  repairing,  81 


172 


INDEX 


Loose  joints,  repairing,  81 
Loose  leaves,  inserting,  78 
Low  bruckram,  134 
Lying  press,  145 

Magazine  binders,  61 
Magazines,  binding  single 

copies,  64 
Maioli  style,  145 
Maps,  mounting,  52 
Maps,  repairing,  84 
Marbled  calf,  146 
Marbler,  146 
Marbling,  146 
Margins,  142 
Marking  books,  57 
Mending  books,  68 
Mending  tissue,  87 
Millboard,  146 
Mitred,  146 
Morocco,  41,  146 
Morocco,  French,  137 
Morocco,  Levant,  145 
Morocco,  Persian,  150 
Morocco,  Turkey,  160 
Morocco  cloth,  41,  147 
Morocco  cloth,  Imperial,  141 
Mosaic  binding,  147 
Mottled  calf,  147 
Mounting,  52 
Music,  binding,  50 

Needles,  87 

Newark  library,  binding  rec- 
ords, 112 

Newark  library,  binding  sta- 
tistics, 22 

Newark  library,  repairing 
methods,  74 

New  Haven  binder,  65 

Newspapers,  binding  accord- 
ing to  use,  42 

Niger  goatskin,  147 

Numbering  backs,  53 

Octavo,  148 
Off-set,  148 


Opening,  ease  of,  23 
Out  of  boards,  148 
Overcasting,  46,  148 

Pallet,  148 

Pamphlets,  binding,  58 

Panel,  148 

Paneling,  149 

Paper,  101 

Paper,  determining  quality, 
109 

Paper,  mending,  88 

Paper,  laid,  144 

Paper,  qualities,  106 

Paper  covers,  90 

Paper  used  in  books,  106 

Papering  up,  149 

Paring,  149 

Paring  knife,  149 

Paste,  85,  88 

Pastewash,  150 

Payne,  Roger,  style,  150 

Pencil  marks  removed,  74 

Persian  morocco,  150 

Petits  fers,  150 

Philadelphia  binder,  67 

Pieced  space,  150 

Pigskin,  41,  151 

Plane,  151 

Plates,  broken-up,  126 

Plates,  insertion  on  guards, 
48 

Plates,  pressing,  152 

Plough,  151 

Pointille  style,  151 

Points,  151 

Polishers,  151 

Powder,  154 

Press,  152 

Press  pin,  152 

Pressing  boards,  152 

Pressing  plates,  152 

Publishers'  bindings,  clean- 
ing, 75 

Publishers'  bindings,  stat- 
istics of  wear,  20 


INDEX 


Quarto,  152 
Quire,  152 

Rag  paper,  102 
Rebinding,  cost  of,  20 
Rebinding  for  wear,  36 
Rebinding,     preparation     of 

books  for,  44 
Records  of  binding,  no 
Recto,  152 
Register,  152 
Repairing  books,  68 
Repairing  joints,  71 
Re-siding  books,  83 
Roan,  153 

Roedde  magazine  binder,  66 
Roger  Payne  style,  150 
Rolling  machine,  153 
Rolls,  153 

Roulette  border,  153 
Rounding,  153 
Rounding  hammer,  153 
Roundlet,  153 
Roxburgh  binding,  153 
Rubbing,  153 
Rugby  wrapping    paper   for 

covers,  91 
Ruler,  88 
Run  up,  154 
Russia  leather,  1 54 

Saddle-stitched,  154 

Sawing  in,  1 54 

Scissors,  88 

Seme,  154 

Setting  the  head,  154 

Sewer,  155 

Sewing  all  along,  119 

Sewing  by  hand,  27 

Sewing  in  loose  sections,  7  9 

Sewing,  flexible,  137 

Sewing  bench,  88 

Sheep,  Law,  144 

Sheepskin,  155 

Shelf-back,  156 

Sides,  material  for,  42 


Signature,  156 
Sixteenmo,  156 
Size,  156 
Skiver,  156 
Slips,  157 
Split  leather,  157 
Springfield  binder,  66 
Sprinkled  calf,  157 
Sprinkled  edges,  157 
Squares,  157 
Stabbed,  157 
Stabbing,  157 
Stabbing  awl,  126 
Stains,  re.moval,  85 
Stamps,  157 
Standing  press,  158 
Start,  158 
Steamboating,  159 
Stitching,  154 
Straight  edge,  159 
Style,  Grolier,  139 
Style,  Le  Gascon,  138 
Style,  Pointille,  151 
Style,  Roger  Payne,  150 
Style,  Roxburgh,  153 
Super,  159 

Tacky,  159 

Tape,  159 

Thirty- two-mo,  159 

Tapes,  sewing  on,  32 

Terminology  of  bookbinding. 

119 

Thread,  45,  89,  159 
Tins,  Inside,  142 
Tipping-in,  71 
Title,  1 60 
Tools,  1 60 
Top  cover,  160 
Top  edges,  160 
Top  gilt,  1 60 
Top  side,  160 
Tops,  gilt,  138 
Torn  leaves,  mending,  75 
Torsion  binder,  66 
Tree  calf,  160 


174 


INDEX 


Trimming,  160 

Trindle,  160 

Tub,  1 60 

Turkey  morocco,  160 

Turning-up,  160 

Tying-up,  161 

Uncut,  161 
Unopened,  161 

Waste  leaves,  161 
Waterproof  sheets,  161 


Wearing  qualities  of  leather, 

95 

Weis  binder,  66 
Whatman  paper,  161 
Whipping,  161 
Whipstitching,  45 
White  edges,  161 
White  ink,  56 
Whole  binding,  161 
Wire  staples,  162 
Witness,  162 
Wood  paper,  101 
Wove  paper,  162 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


